Impact of sex and age on the mevalonate pathway in the brain: A focus on effects induced by maternal exposure to exogenous compounds

Abstract

The mevalonate pathway produces cholesterol and other compounds crucial for numerous cellular processes. It is well known that age and sex modulate this pathway in the liver. Recently, similar effects were also noted in different brain areas, suggesting that alterations of the mevalonate pathway are at the root of marked sex-specific disparities in some neurodevelopmental disorders related to disturbed cholesterol homeostasis. Here, we show how the mevalonate pathway is modulated in a sex-, age-and region-specific manner, and how maternal exposure to exogenous compounds can disturb the regulation of this pathway in the brain, possibly inducing functional alterations.