Oxidative stress is implicated in the pathophysiology of aging and agerelated health conditions, such as cancer, cardiovascular disorders and
neurodegenerative diseases; therefore, the supplementation of diet with plant-derived
antioxidants is recognized as a potential strategy to delay or even prevent the onset of
age-related diseases. Among the model organisms commonly used in the early phases
of anti-aging drug discovery, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans has proven useful
for investigating the bioactivity of complex extracts and isolated plant secondary
metabolites. In this chapter, we have reviewed recent studies on the antioxidant,
longevity-promoting and neuroprotective activities of polyphenol-rich plant extracts in
C. elegans, with particular focus on the highly conserved insulin/IGF-1 signaling
pathway.
Keywords: Age-related diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, Amyloid beta, Anti-aging, Antioxidant, Caenorhabditis elegans, DAF-16, GFP, HSF-1, Huntington’s disease, IIS pathway, Neuroprotection, oxidative stress, Pplant extracts, Polyglutamine, Polyphenols, Protein aggregation, ROS, Secondary metabolites, SKN-1.
