Heme-dependent induction of mitophagy program during murine erythroid cell differentiation

Heme is the principal component in hemoglobin to carry oxygen molecules that are abundantly produced during the maturation of erythroblasts into red blood cells (RBCs). Half of the steps of heme synthesis are catalyzed in mitochondria 1. In contrast to this dependence on mitochondria for heme synthesis, erythroblasts undergo enucleation and clearance of cytoplasmic components including mitochondria, which are potential oxygen consumers and can generate deleterious reactive oxygen species (ROS). The fidelity of this process is crucial to produce red blood cells with the capacity to transfer oxygen and confer organismal survival 2,3.

Source: Experimental Hematology - December 5, 2022 Category: Hematology Authors: Masatoshi Ikeda, Hiroki Kato, Hiroki Shima, Mitsuyo Matsumoto, Eijiro Furukawa, Yan Yan, Ruiqi Liao, Jian Xu, Akihiko Muto, Tohru Fujiwara, Hideo Harigae, Emery H. Bresnick, Kazuhiko Igarashi Tags: Article Source Type: research