There is increasing interest in whether mesenchymal stemcells (MSC) act as mitochondrial donors for rescuinginjured cells. Islam et al (Nature Medicine, 2012) showedconclusively, using a mouse model of acute lung injury,that MSC mediated mitochondrial donation can lead tosurvival benefits (3). Contemporaneous work fromDr. Anurag Agrawal’s lab reveals the molecular regulationof mitochondrial movement during donation and showshow this can be engineered to increase therapeutic efficacyof MSC. They find that Miro1, a calcium sensitive mitochondrialRho-GTPase that attaches mitochondria to KIF5motor proteins on microtubules and regulates neuronalmitochondrial trafficking, is necessary for mitochondrialtransfer by MSC. Overexpressing Miro1 in MSC(MSCmiroHi) led to increased mitochondrial transfer andtherapeutic efficacy in mouse models of lung injury as wellas asthma. This is a significant addition to the field ofmitochondrial biology and stem cell therapeutics. It is alsoof general interest to physicians and members of publicwith interest in regenerative medicine, because this ishighly translatable into more effective therapies.
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