{"title":"Treatment with efavirenz extends survival in a Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease model by regulating brain cholesterol metabolism.","authors":"Tahir Ali, Jessica Cashion, Samia Hannaoui, Hanaa Ahmed-Hassan, Hermann Schatzl, Sabine Gilch","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.190296","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.190296","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Prion diseases are fatal, infectious, and incurable neurodegenerative conditions affecting humans and animals, caused by the misfolding of the cellular prion protein (PrPC) into its pathogenic isoform, PrPSc. In humans, sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (sCJD) is the most prevalent prion disease. Recently, we demonstrated that treatment with the FDA-approved anti-HIV drug efavirenz (EFV) significantly reduced PrPSc and extended survival of scrapie prion-infected mice. Among other effects, EFV activates the brain-specific cholesterol-metabolizing enzyme, CYP46A1, which converts cholesterol into 24S-hydroxycholesterol (24S-HC). However, drugs effective against scrapie prions often fail in human prion diseases, and a relation of the antiprion effects of EFV to CYP46A1 activation is not established. Thus, we evaluated EFV treatment in mice overexpressing human PrPC infected with human sCJD prions. Oral, low-dose EFV treatment starting at 30 or 130 days postinfection significantly slowed disease progression and extended their survival. At early clinical stage, we observed reduced PrPSc accumulation, decreased cholesterol and lipid droplet content, and elevated CYP46A1 and 24S-HC levels in EFV-treated mice. Overexpression of CYP46A1 in prion-infected neuronal cells reduced PrPSc levels and increased 24S-HC, indicating that antiprion effects of EFV correlate with CYP46A1 activation. These findings highlight EFV as a safe and efficacious therapeutic candidate for human prion diseases.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144336587","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
JCI insightPub Date : 2025-06-17eCollection Date: 2025-07-22DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.191463
Bentley Bobrow, Samuel D Luber, Paul Potnuru, Katherine Figarella, Jieun Kim, Yanyu Wang, In Hyuk Bang, David Robinson, Paulina B Sergot, Steven K Burke, Tingting Mills, Constanza de Dios, Robert Suchting, George W Williams, Adit A Ginde, Yafen Liang, Hongfang Liu, Charles Green, Marie-Francoise Doursout, Alparslan Turan, Daniel I Sessler, Xiaoyi Yuan, Holger K Eltzschig
{"title":"Identification of HIF1A as a therapeutic target during SARS-CoV-2-associated lung injury.","authors":"Bentley Bobrow, Samuel D Luber, Paul Potnuru, Katherine Figarella, Jieun Kim, Yanyu Wang, In Hyuk Bang, David Robinson, Paulina B Sergot, Steven K Burke, Tingting Mills, Constanza de Dios, Robert Suchting, George W Williams, Adit A Ginde, Yafen Liang, Hongfang Liu, Charles Green, Marie-Francoise Doursout, Alparslan Turan, Daniel I Sessler, Xiaoyi Yuan, Holger K Eltzschig","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.191463","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.191463","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) promote lung protection and pathogen eradication during acute lung injury. We, therefore, tested the theory that pharmacologic stabilization of HIFs dampens lung injury during SARS-CoV-2 pneumonia. Initial studies in murine SARS-CoV-2 models showed improved outcomes after treatment with the FDA-approved HIF stabilizer vadadustat. Subsequent studies in genetic models implicated alveolus-expressed Hif1a in mediating lung protection. Therefore, we performed a randomized, double-blinded, multicenter phase II trial in patients admitted for SARS-CoV-2 infection and concomitant hypoxia (SpO2 ≤ 94%). Patients (n = 448) were randomized to oral vadadustat (900 mg/day) or placebo for up to 14 days. Safety events were similar between the 2 groups. Vadadustat treatment induced surrogate HIF target genes. The primary outcome of severe lung injury requiring high oxygen support on day 14 occurred in 43 patients in the vadadustat group and 53 patients in the placebo group (estimated probability, 13.3% vs. 16.9%). Among patients with baseline fraction of inspired oxygen of 80% or higher (n = 106), the estimated probability of the primary outcome was 12.1% (vadadustat) versus 79.1% (placebo), indicating an even greater benefit in patients with more severe baseline hypoxia. HIF1A is a likely therapeutic target during SARS-CoV-2-associated lung injury. Robust clinical trials of HIF stabilizers during pathogen-associated lung injury are warranted.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144316878","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Fine mapping of heterozygous IL6ST nonsense variants underlying autosomal dominant hyper-IgE syndrome.","authors":"Kosuke Ashihara, Takaki Asano, Kanako Takeuchi, Kosuke Noma, Miyuki Tsumura, Wenjie Wang, Wei-Te Lei, Hisao Higo, Toshio Kubo, Yoko Mizoguchi, Shuhei Karakawa, Aurélie Cobat, Clément Conil, Etsushi Toyofuku, Akimasa Sekine, Kohsuke Imai, Dusan Bogunovic, Jean-Laurent Casanova, Cheng-Lung Ku, Vivien Béziat, Satoshi Okada","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.190065","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.190065","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Loss-of-function (LOF) variants in IL6ST, encoding GP130, can cause hyper-IgE syndrome (HIES). Monoallelic LOF variants in IL6ST lead to HIES when located in the intracellular domain downstream of box 1/2 and upstream of the STAT3 phosphorylation sites and the recycling motif, due to their dominant negative (DN) activity. In this region, 2 previously unreported IL6ST variants, p.K702Sfs7* and p.Y759Wfs26*, were identified in 2 families with autosomal dominant (AD) HIES. Both variants were LOF and exhibited DN effects, leading to the accumulation of mutant GP130 on the cell surface. The p.K702Sfs7* mutation was the most upstream N-terminal mutation linked to HIES caused by heterozygous IL6ST variants. Comprehensive screening of IL6ST mutants revealed that most premature terminations downstream of amino acid F641, at the end of the transmembrane domain, resulted in LOF and DN effects via GP130 accumulation on the cell surface. The absence of the recycling motif (positions 782-787) in surface-expressed LOF GP130 led to its accumulation, contributing to the DN effect. The importance of intracellular truncating IL6ST variants can possibly be predicted based on the location of the premature stop codon. GP130 accumulation on the cell surface is a characteristic and potentially diagnostic finding in patients with HIES with heterozygous IL6ST variants.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144316877","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
JCI insightPub Date : 2025-06-17eCollection Date: 2025-07-22DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.189636
Jeremy A Herrera, Mark Maslanka, Rachel Z Blumhagen, Rachel Blomberg, Nyan Ye Lwin, Janna Brancato, Carlyne D Cool, Jonathan P Huber, Jonathan S Kurche, Chelsea M Magin, Kirk C Hansen, Ivana V Yang, David A Schwartz
{"title":"The MUC5B promoter variant results in proteomic changes in the nonfibrotic lung.","authors":"Jeremy A Herrera, Mark Maslanka, Rachel Z Blumhagen, Rachel Blomberg, Nyan Ye Lwin, Janna Brancato, Carlyne D Cool, Jonathan P Huber, Jonathan S Kurche, Chelsea M Magin, Kirk C Hansen, Ivana V Yang, David A Schwartz","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.189636","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.189636","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The gain-of-function MUC5B promoter variant is the dominant risk factor for the development of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). However, its impact on protein expression in both nonfibrotic control and IPF lung specimens has not been well characterized. Utilizing laser capture microdissection coupled to mass spectrometry, we investigated the proteomic profiles of airway and alveolar epithelium in nonfibrotic controls (n = 12) and IPF specimens (n = 12), stratified by the MUC5B promoter variant. Through qualitative and quantitative analyses, as well as pathway analysis and immunohistological validation, we have identified a distinct MUC5B-associated protein profile. Notably, the nonfibrotic control alveoli exhibited substantial MUC5B-associated protein changes, with an increase in IL-3 signaling. Additionally, we found that epithelial cells overlying IPF fibroblastic foci clustered closely to alveolar epithelia and expressed proteins associated with cellular stress pathways. In conclusion, our findings suggest that the MUC5B promoter variant leads to protein changes in alveolar and airway epithelium that appear to be associated with initiation and progression of lung fibrosis.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144316880","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Large-scale survey, animal models, and computational modeling identify histological neurodegenerative biomarkers for traumatic optic neuropathy.","authors":"YiKui Zhang, BoYue Xu, ShiWei Huang, ZhaoHui Shi, Wei Xiong, Ruijun Wang, GuiQin Liu, Linlin Chen, ZhenHua Ge, YongJie Zhang, HongLei Liu, BaoYun Jia, ChunXia Wang, HaiHong Shi, Jun Kang, NingYu An, ShuRui Huang, DeFu Chen, ShengHai Huang, YuTing Luo, MingYue Liu, ZhuoWei Wang, ZhongHao Yu, Jingwei Zheng, Wentao Yan, Gen Li, Hao Chen, XingGuang Deng, ShiHui Wei, YunHai Tu, EnDe Wu, Kang Zhang, WenCan Wu","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.190682","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.190682","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>BACKGROUNDTraumatic optic neuropathy (TON) is a leading cause of blindness following closed traumatic brain injury, with no effective treatments available. Previous interventional clinical trials were complicated by its low prevalence, variability in neurodegenerative severity, and unavailability of reliable biomarkers.METHODSWe analyzed data from 1,226 patients enrolled in the prospective National Multi-Center Collaborative Clinical Research Program of China (2017-2024) to establish a clinical profile and identify noninvasive biomarkers for neurodegenerative severity. Subgroup analysis of patients with monocular TON revealed potential biomarkers, including visual functional parameters, inner retinal thickness, and time postinjury.RESULTSThe ganglion cell complex (GCC) thickness showed a strong correlation with retinal ganglion cell somata (R² = 0.87, P < 0.0001) and axon density (R² = 0.89, P < 0.0001) in a clinically relevant large animal model. Computational analysis demonstrated that using GCC thickness as a biomarker could substantially enhance the statistical power of clinical trials (by up to 4.5-fold), as verified by real-world data.CONCLUSIONThis study presents the largest epidemiological analysis of TON to date and establishes GCC thickness as a crucial biomarker for stratifying disease severity and improving the efficiency of clinical trials.TRIAL REGISTRATIONChinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR-OOC-17013437).FUNDINGNational Key R&D Program of China (Grant No. 2022YFA1105500), Key Science and Technology Program of Wenzhou (Grant No. ZY2022021), National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 82471080).</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144316879","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
JCI insightPub Date : 2025-06-12eCollection Date: 2025-07-22DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.193208
Tianming You, Mehrdad Zandigohar, Tanvi Potluri, Natalie Piehl, John S Coon V, Elizabeth Baker, Maya Kafali, Yang Dai, Jonah J Stulberg, David J Escobar, Richard L Lieber, Hong Zhao, Serdar E Bulun
{"title":"Role of progesterone action in inguinal hernia formation via skeletal muscle fibrosis and atrophy.","authors":"Tianming You, Mehrdad Zandigohar, Tanvi Potluri, Natalie Piehl, John S Coon V, Elizabeth Baker, Maya Kafali, Yang Dai, Jonah J Stulberg, David J Escobar, Richard L Lieber, Hong Zhao, Serdar E Bulun","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.193208","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.193208","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>More than 1 in 4 men will undergo surgery for inguinal hernia, which is commonly associated with fibrotic degeneration of the lower abdominal muscle (LAM) in the groin region. Utilizing a male mouse model expressing the human aromatase gene (Aromhum), previous studies showed that locally produced estradiol acting via estrogen receptor α in LAM fibroblasts leads to fibrosis, myofiber atrophy, and hernia development. Here, we found that upregulation of progesterone receptor (PGR) in a LAM fibroblast population mediates this estrogenic effect. A PGR-selective progesterone antagonist in Aromhum mice decreased LAM fibrosis and atrophy, preventing hernia formation and stopping progression of existing hernias. Addition of progesterone to estradiol treatment was essential for early-onset development of LAM fibrosis and large hernias in wild-type mice, which was averted by a progesterone antagonist. Single-nuclei multiomics sequencing of herniated LAM revealed a unique population of Pgr-expressing fibroblasts that promotes fibrosis and myofiber atrophy through TGF-β2 signaling. Multiomics findings were validated in vivo in herniated LAM tissues of both mice and adult men. Our findings suggest an important and rare pathologic role of progesterone signaling in males and provide evidence for progesterone antagonists as a nonsurgical alternative for inguinal hernia management.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144284414","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Estrogens determine the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy in obese males with melanoma.","authors":"Eloïse Dupuychaffray, Hélène Poinot, Aurélie Vuilleumier, Maxime Borgeaud, Montserrat Alvarez, Betül Taskoparan, Olivier Preynat-Seauve, Clarissa D Voegel, Eliana Marinari, Denis Migliorini, Valérie Dutoit, Carole Bourquin, Aurélien Pommier","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.189758","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.189758","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Although obesity is a major risk factor for cancer, it may also improve the response to cancer therapy. Here we investigated the impact of obesity on the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI). In male mice, obesity promoted tumor growth but enhanced the response to ICI. This was associated with higher expression of immune-related genes within the tumor and enhanced infiltration of tumor-specific CD8+ T cells. Further, obesity in mice was associated with higher estrogen levels and enrichment of estrogen response genes in the tumor, and anti-programmed cell death 1 (anti-PD-1) efficacy was reduced upon administration of the aromatase inhibitor letrozole, which blocks the production of estrogens. Mechanistically, adipocyte-derived estrogens increased antigen presentation by dendritic cells and tumor-specific CD8+ T cell cytotoxicity. Last, overweight and obese men with melanoma responded better to ICI, with high estrogen levels being associated with improved response and survival. Our results suggest that estrogens may serve as a predictive factor of response to ICI in men with melanoma.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144309936","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
JCI insightPub Date : 2025-06-12eCollection Date: 2025-07-22DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.186338
Nicholas E Stone, Laura R Bohrer, Nathaniel K Mullin, Alexander Berthold, Allison T Wright, Ian C Han, Edwin M Stone, Robert F Mullins, Budd A Tucker
{"title":"Device-free isolation of photoreceptor cells from patient iPSC-derived retinal organoids.","authors":"Nicholas E Stone, Laura R Bohrer, Nathaniel K Mullin, Alexander Berthold, Allison T Wright, Ian C Han, Edwin M Stone, Robert F Mullins, Budd A Tucker","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.186338","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.186338","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Autologous photoreceptor cell replacement is one of the most promising strategies currently being developed for the treatment of patients with inherited retinal degenerative blindness. Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived (iPSC-derived) retinal organoids, which faithfully recapitulate the structure of the neural retina, are an ideal source of transplantable photoreceptors required for these therapies. However, retinal organoids contain other retinal cell types, including bipolar, horizontal, and amacrine cells, which are unneeded and may reduce the potency of the final therapeutic product. Therefore, approaches for isolating fate-committed photoreceptor cells from dissociated retinal organoids are desirable. In this work, we present partial dissociation, a technique that leverages the high level of organization found in retinal organoids to enable selective enrichment of photoreceptor cells without the use of specialized equipment or reagents such as antibody labels. We demonstrate up to 90% photoreceptor cell purity by simply selecting cell fractions liberated from retinal organoids during enzymatic digestion in the absence of mechanical dissociation. Since the presented approach relies on the use of standard plasticware and commercially available current good manufacturing practice-compliant reagents, we believe that it is ideal for use in the preparation of clinical photoreceptor cell replacement therapies.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144284413","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cytoskeleton-associated protein 4 affects podocyte cytoskeleton dynamics in diabetic kidney disease.","authors":"Roberto Boi, Emelie Lassén, Alva Johansson, Peidi Liu, Aditi Chaudhari, Ramesh Tati, Janina Müller-Deile, Mario Schiffer, Kerstin Ebefors, Jenny Nyström","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.181298","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.181298","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Podocytes are kidney glomerular cells that depend on rigorously regulated cytoskeleton components and integrins to form and maintain the so-called foot processes, apparatuses that attach podocytes to the glomerular basement membrane and connect them to neighboring podocytes. In diabetic kidney disease (DKD) these foot processes are effaced as a result of cytoskeleton dysregulation, a phenomenon that gradually reduces glomerular filtration. Cytoskeleton-associated protein 4 (CKAP4) is a known linker between the endoplasmic reticulum, integrins, and microtubular cytoskeleton. Since CKAP4 gene expression is downregulated in glomeruli from patients with DKD but not in other chronic kidney diseases, we hypothesized a role for CKAP4 in the mechanisms leading to foot process effacement (FPE) in DKD. CKAP4 mRNA reduction in podocytes in DKD was demonstrated in human kidney biopsies. Knockdown of CKAP4 in vivo in zebrafish resulted in edema, proteinuria, and foot process effacement, all typical features of DKD. Knockdown of CKAP4 in vitro led to disruption of the actin cytoskeleton and of the microtubular orientation. Moreover, it caused a downregulation of several integrins. These findings indicate that CKAP4 is crucial for foot process dynamics of podocytes. Its reduction, unique to DKD, is mechanistically connected to the pathophysiological processes leading to podocyte FPE.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144266242","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
JCI insightPub Date : 2025-06-10eCollection Date: 2025-07-22DOI: 10.1172/jci.insight.187792
Xutao Deng, Clara Di Germanio, Erika G Marques de Menezes, Pamela Milani, Mars Stone, Heather Tanner, Sonia Coco Bakkour, Daniel M Chafets, Sarah E Reese, Nareg H Roubinian, Steven Kleinman, Tamir Kanias, Michael P Busch, Eric J Earley, Grier P Page, Travis Nemkov, Angelo D'Alessandro, Philip J Norris
{"title":"Donor genetics and storage conditions influence mitochondrial DNA and extracellular vesicle levels in RBC units.","authors":"Xutao Deng, Clara Di Germanio, Erika G Marques de Menezes, Pamela Milani, Mars Stone, Heather Tanner, Sonia Coco Bakkour, Daniel M Chafets, Sarah E Reese, Nareg H Roubinian, Steven Kleinman, Tamir Kanias, Michael P Busch, Eric J Earley, Grier P Page, Travis Nemkov, Angelo D'Alessandro, Philip J Norris","doi":"10.1172/jci.insight.187792","DOIUrl":"10.1172/jci.insight.187792","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) shares characteristics with bacterial DNA and activates immune cells via TLR9Extracellular vesicles (EVs) and mtDNA have been found in blood products and can activate immune cells; we sought to characterize their evolution in stored blood products. From a previous study of hemolysis in 13,403 blood donors, a second blood unit was drawn from 651 donors and sampled at days 10, 21, and 42. EV counts and RBC-EVs increased with storage time, and EV levels were higher in males and in RBC units processed in AS-1 compared with AS-3. mtDNA levels were higher in females and RBC units processed in AS-3. EV populations and mtDNA levels were highly correlated within donors for 98 donations obtained 2-12 months apart. Quantitative trait locus analysis revealed several genetic associations, most notably linking mtDNA levels with polymorphisms in ANKLE1, which encodes an erythroid-specific protein that preferentially cleaves mtDNA. These data suggest that donor-intrinsic factors may influence mtDNA and EV levels found in RBC units. This finding lends impetus to determining if genetic or environmental factors control levels of these immune mediators in blood donors.</p>","PeriodicalId":14722,"journal":{"name":"JCI insight","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-06-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144266243","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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