Cell homeostasis alterations induced by environmental stress

The modern lifestyle with high level of industrialization eventuates in the large quantity of environmental pollutants entering the atmosphere, soil and water. Hence, exposure of the organism to these elements occurs primarily through the ingestion of contaminated food and water or through inhalation of polluted air. Environmental contaminants such as heavy metals and other xenobiotics are able to interact with essential cellular components resulting in destabilization of the control machineries required for the normal cell behavior. The main focus of this review is thus to describe the current knowledge of the threat of the toxic environment to fundamental processes of living organisms. Although much has been investigated to date concerning the effect of environmental contamination on all aspects of the organism’s biological processes including metabolism, growth, or reproduction, still a lot remains elusive.