ATC Abstracts

American Transplant Congress abstracts

  • Home
  • Meetings Archive
    • 2022 American Transplant Congress
    • 2021 American Transplant Congress
    • 2020 American Transplant Congress
    • 2019 American Transplant Congress
    • 2018 American Transplant Congress
    • 2017 American Transplant Congress
    • 2016 American Transplant Congress
    • 2015 American Transplant Congress
    • 2013 American Transplant Congress
  • Keyword Index
  • Resources
    • 2021 Resources
    • 2016 Resources
      • 2016 Welcome Letter
      • ATC 2016 Program Planning Committees
      • ASTS Council 2015-2016
      • AST Board of Directors 2015-2016
    • 2015 Resources
      • 2015 Welcome Letter
      • ATC 2015 Program Planning Committees
      • ASTS Council 2014-2015
      • AST Board of Directors 2014-2015
      • 2015 Conference Schedule
  • Search

Age-Enhanced Transplant Vasculopathy Associates with Impaired Vascular Mitophagy

M. Blin1, D. Tyrrell1, S. Wood1, D. Farris1, S. G. Tullius2, D. R. Goldstein1

1Micro and Immunology/Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, 2Transplant Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA

Meeting: 2020 American Transplant Congress

Abstract number: 325

Keywords: Age factors, Donors, marginal, Graft arterlosclerosis, Vascular disease

Session Information

Session Name: Endothelial Cell Biology

Session Type: Oral Abstract Session

Date: Saturday, May 30, 2020

Session Time: 3:15pm-4:45pm

 Presentation Time: 4:15pm-4:27pm

Location: Virtual

*Purpose: Donor aging leads to increased chronic allograft vasculopathy (CAV) for unclear reasons. Here, we investigated whether impaired alterations in mitophagy, a mechanism to remove damaged mitochondria, contributes to aged-enhanced CAV.

*Methods: To determine if donor aging enhances CAV in mice, we heterotopically transplanted young (2-4 months of age) and aged (18 months) BALB/c cardiac allografts into young (2-4 months of age) C57BL/6 recipients, which were treated with peri-operative costimulatory blockade to avoid acute allograft rejection.

*Results: At 100 days post transplantation, histological examination found that aged donors exhibited increased vessel occlusion (50%) vs. young allografts (20%, p<0.05, n=4 / group). We next compared the vasculature of young and aged mice prior to transplantation and found that aged arteries and vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) secreted a 2-fold increase in inflammatory mediators, specifically IL-6 and galectin-3 (n = >6/group, p<0.05). Inducing senescence via irradiating VSMC from young mice also led to a three-fold increase in the secretion of galectin-3. Examination of the VSMC from aged and young mitophagy reporter mice (mtKeima mice) revealed that the age-elevations in galectin-3 were accompanied with impaired mitophagy, supporting the concept that that failure to efficiently remove mitochondria leads to galectin 3 secretion. To examine this further, we examined the regulation of galectin-3 and IL-6 in young mice deficient in the mitophagy protein, Parkin. Interestingly, we found that, relative to young wild-type mice, Parkin deficient mice exhibited two-fold increase in aortic levels of both galectin-3 and IL-6 (n=6-8/group, p<0.05).

*Conclusions: Our study has revealed that donor aging increases CAV in mice and suggests that this is due to impaired mitophagy of the donor vasculature leading to the secretion of the inflammatory mediators, galectin-3 and IL-6. Inhibition of these mediators could be a therapeutic strategy to reduce age-enhanced CAV, thus facilitating an increased utilization of older organs for transplantation.

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Blin M, Tyrrell D, Wood S, Farris D, Tullius SG, Goldstein DR. Age-Enhanced Transplant Vasculopathy Associates with Impaired Vascular Mitophagy [abstract]. Am J Transplant. 2020; 20 (suppl 3). https://atcmeetingabstracts.com/abstract/age-enhanced-transplant-vasculopathy-associates-with-impaired-vascular-mitophagy/. Accessed May 9, 2025.

« Back to 2020 American Transplant Congress

Visit Our Partner Sites

American Transplant Congress (ATC)

Visit the official site for the American Transplant Congress »

American Journal of Transplantation

The official publication for the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS) »

American Society of Transplantation (AST)

An organization of more than 3000 professionals dedicated to advancing the field of transplantation. »

American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS)

The society represents approximately 1,800 professionals dedicated to excellence in transplantation surgery. »

Copyright © 2013-2025 by American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Cookie Preferences