Reframing the Question: Does Mitochondrial Damage Set the Stage for Future Inflammation?

摘要

In the 1970s, evidence emerged that environmental exposures could damage mitochondria, the primary regulators of cellular energetics.1,2 More recently, researchers are studying how stressed mitochondria may initiate a signaling cascade that culminates in inflammation. At the center of this increased investigation is a multiprotein complex called the NLRP3 inflammasome.3,4 The elusive link between environmentally induced mitotoxicity and inflammasome activation is the subject of a new study published in Environmental Health Perspectives.5