title: Inflame on!: mitochondrial escape provokes cytokine storms that doom the heart.
abstract: Mitochondria are derived from primordial bacterial endosymbionts and retain partial genomes. In mammalian cells, damaged or dysfunctional mitochondria are recognized, targeted for elimination, then neatly packaged and eliminated via mitophagy. A recent paper from Oka et al describes how interrupting normal mitophagic mitochondrial DNA degradation after pressure overload can activate Toll-like receptor-9 mediated innate immunity, causing myocardial inflammation that contributes to cardiomyopathic decompensation.
authors: Gerald W
authors: GW
authors: Dorn