Oxidative DNA Damage: A Role in Altering Neuronal Function

A role for oxidative stress in the etiology of myriad neuropathologies is well accepted. However, the specific effects of oxidative DNA damage in the onset or promotion of neuronal dysfunction have been less studied. In our recent publication by Behrouzi et al. (Oxidative DNA Damage and Cisplatin Neurotoxicity Is Exacerbated by Inhibition of OGG1 Glycosylase Activity and APE1 Endonuclease Activity in Sensory Neurons), inhibition of enzymes that play a role in repairing oxidative DNA damage exacerbated neurotoxic effects of the chemotherapeutic agent, cisplatin. In this Commentary, we aim to expand on the contribution of oxidative DNA damage to other neuropathologies within the peripheral and central nervous systems, including irritable bowel disease, aging and Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and other neurodegenerative diseases. Consistently, clinical neuropathology and disease progression correlates with increases in oxidative DNA damage within clinical biopsies. Progress in animal models of these diseases has elucidated a causative role for oxidative DNA damage in disease progression, as dampening the DNA repair response exacerbates disease, whereas promoting DNA repair mitigates disease. Overall, this Commentary highlights the importance of expanding our studies on oxidative DNA damage in the nervous system, as enhancing oxidative DNA repair might prove to be a potential therapeutic target for the mitigation of neurodegeneration.