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404 Platelets are a source of extracellular mitochondria and mitochondrial DNA in systemic lupus erythematosus
  1. Imene Melki1,2,
  2. Isabelle Allaeys1,2,
  3. Nicolas Tessandier1,2,
  4. Tania Lévesque1,2,
  5. Nathalie Cloutier1,
  6. Audrée Laroche1,2,
  7. Nathalie Vernoux3,
  8. Yann Becker1,2,
  9. Hadrien Benk-Fortin1,2,
  10. Anne Zufferey1,2,
  11. Emmanuelle Rollet-Labelle1,2,
  12. Marc Pouliot1,2,
  13. Guy Poirier4,
  14. Natacha Patey5,
  15. Clemence Belleannee6,
  16. Denis Soulet4,
  17. Steven E McKenzie7,
  18. Alain Brisson8,
  19. Marie-Eve Tremblay3,9,
  20. Christian Lood10,
  21. Paul R Fortin1,2,11 and
  22. Eric Boilard1,2
  1. 1Centre de recherche du Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec–Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
  2. 2Faculté de Médecine and Centre de recherche ARThrite, Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
  3. 3Axe neurosciences du Centre de recherche du Centre hospitalier universitaire de Québec–Université Laval et Département de médecine moléculaire de l’Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
  4. 4Department of Molecular Biology, Medical Biochemistry, and Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Quebec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
  5. 5Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sainte-Justine, Faculté de Médecine, Département de pathologie et biologie cellulaire, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, H3T 1C5, Canada
  6. 6Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproduction, Centre hospitalier universitaire (CHU) de Québec–Université Laval et Département de médecine moléculaire de l’Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada
  7. 7Cardeza Foundation for Hematologic Research, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
  8. 8UMR-CBMN CNRS-Université de Bordeaux-IPB, Pessac 33600, France
  9. 9Division of Medical Sciences, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, V8W 2Y2, Canada
  10. 10Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
  11. 11Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, CHU de Québec–Université Laval, Québec, QC, G1V 4G2, Canada

Abstract

Background The accumulation of DNA and nuclear components in blood and their recognition by autoantibodies play a central role in the pathophysiology of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Despite the efforts, the sources of these circulating autoantigens in SLE are still unclear. While damaged organs and activated cells are generally considered as potential sources of autoantigens, platelets are often overlooked given that they are anucleated and thereby cannot release genomic DNA. However, accumulating findings suggest that mitochondria are also targeted by antibodies in SLE.

Methods We examined the presence of extracellular mitochondria in blood of patients with SLE and determined correlations with platelet activation. Because mice lack FcγRIIA and murine platelets are completely devoid of receptor capable of binding IgG-containing immune complexes, we generated transgenic lupus mice expressing FcγRIIA for our in vivo investigations. We used a reporter mouse with red fluorescent protein targeted to the mitochondrion to identify the cellular source of the extracellular mitochondria.

Results We found extracellular mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and mitochondrial organelles in the plasma of patients with SLE. The concentrations of mtDNA and extracellular mitochondria were higher than in healthy individuals, and mtDNA levels correlated with that of platelet factor 4 (PF4), a marker of platelet degranulation. The majority of the detected mtDNA was associated with the extracellular mitochondrial organelle. In our in vitro and in vivo investigations, mitochondrial release by platelets required the stimulation of platelet FcγRIIA, a receptor for immune complexes. FcγRIIA expression in lupus-prone mice accelerated nephritis, led to the recruitment of platelets in kidneys and to the release of mitochondria in vivo. Using our mouse model with fluorescently labeled mitochondria, we confirmed platelets as a source of extracellular mitochondria driven by FcγRIIA and its co-signaling by the fibrinogen receptor α2bβ3 in vivo.

Conclusion Our findings suggest that platelets might be a key source of mitochondrial antigens in SLE and might be a therapeutic target for treating SLE.

Acknowledgments This work was supported by a Foundation grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) (to E.B.). E.B. is recipient of a new investigator award from the CIHR and the Fonds de Recherche en Santé du Quebec (FRQS) PRF is recipient of a tier 1 Canada Research Chair on Systemic Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases.

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/

This is an open access article distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited, appropriate credit is given, any changes made indicated, and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.

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