Fig. 1
From: Zinc–gene interaction related to inflammatory/immune response in ageing
The interaction between zinc dietary intake and some genes regulating the inflammatory response and zinc homeostasis for healthy ageing and longevity: Polymorphism of genes involved in regulating zinc hoemostasis (i.e. MT) can be schematically represented as the hinge of the balance that determine the adequate dietary intake of zinc necessary to counterbalance the weight of pro-inflammatory genes. An high inflammatory response can result detrimental in ageing leading to increased susceptibility to inflammation-based diseases later in life. On the other side, feeding the body with the adequate requirement of zinc can result in a proper anti-inflammatory response which may be pivotal to reach longevity