Natural phytochemicals that affect autophagy in the treatment of oral diseases and infections: A review

Abstract

Autophagy is a critical factor in eukaryotic evolution. Cells provide nutrition and energy during autophagy by destroying non-essential components, thereby allowing intracellular material conversion and managing temporary survival stress. Autophagy is linked to a variety of oral disorders, including the type and extent of oral malignancies. Furthermore, autophagy is important in lymphocyte formation, innate immunity, and the regulation of acquired immune responses. It is also required for immunological responses in the oral cavity. Knowledge of autophagy has aided in the identification and treatment of common oral disorders, most notably cancers. The involvement of autophagy in the oral immune system may offer a new understanding of the immune mechanism and provide a novel approach to eliminating harmful bacteria in the body. This review focuses on autophagy creation, innate and acquired immunological responses to autophagy, and the status of autophagy in microbial infection research. Recent developments in the regulatory mechanisms of autophagy and therapeutic applications in oral illnesses, particularly oral cancers, are also discussed. Finally, the relationship between various natural substances that may be used as medications and autophagy is investigated.

Keywords: autophagy; cancer; microbial infection; natural substances; oral diseases.

FIGURE 1

Process and mechanism of autophagy, including autophagy signal induction, precursor formation, phagocytic vesicle extension, autophagosome and lysosome fusion, and autophagolysosome degradation.

FIGURE 2

Process of autophagosome formation. Autophagosomes are composed of a double membrane enclosing a small portion of the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm contains digested material consisting of various components such as mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum fragments, etc. The contents are degraded through fusion with lysosomes.

FIGURE 3

Relationship between autophagy and microbiota. Autophagy is a “double-edged sword” that is involved in host defense against pathogen infection, allowing invading bacteria to be transported to lysosomes for degradation via lipid raft mediated endocytosis. However, it can also be a unique strategy for certain pathogenic bacteria to evade immune surveillance, thereby promoting the survival, proliferation, and extent of infection in the incoming bacteria.

FIGURE 4

Association between autophagy and oral disease. Autophagy promotes the clearance of bacteria and toxins by infected cells and also contributes to the inhibition of inflammatory responses to maintain intracellular environment homeostasis, which is closely related to the occurrence and development of oral diseases.

FIGURE 5

Exploring oral diseases and autophagy may provide references for the study of diseases elsewhere in the body.

FIGURE 6

Relationship between immune cells and microorganisms.