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Graeme Preston

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Jul 2026

Delineation and Phenotypic Expansion of TOP3A-Related Mitochondrial Disease in Childhood.

TOP3A-related mitochondrial disease is a rare autosomal recessive primary mitochondrial cytopathy caused by loss-of-function of the mitochondrial-specific isoform of topoisomerase 3α, leading to multiple mitochondrial DNA deletions and mitochondrial DNA depletion. This condition has been associated with two different phenotypes. Very young patients present with severe growth faltering and early mortality, that is consistent with a Bloom syndrome-like disorder. Adult-onset chronic progressive external ophthalmoplegia, myopathy, and sensory ataxia, with rare hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (a MIRAS-like phenotype), reflects a mitochondrial disorder. In this article, we expand the phenotype spectrum of TOP3A-related mitochondrial disease with a mitochondrial childhood onset form and present four previously unreported patients, including the outcomes of heart transplantation for three patients. Histopathological, electron microscopical, biochemical, and molecular characterization of muscle and heart tissue indicated mitochondrial dysfunction with combined complex deficiency associated with a mitochondrial DNA maintenance disorder primarily expressed in the heart. Heart transplantation was successful in patients with TOP3A-related mitochondrial disease that presented with cardiomyopathy in childhood, although there is slowly progressive neurological disease. In childhood, TOP3A-related disease presents with a combination of developmental delays, sensorineural hearing loss, cardiomyopathy with rhythm abnormalities, stroke-like episodes, and Leigh-like phenotype, and, in some, epilepsy. These mitochondrial phenotypes are different from the infantile Bloom-like syndrome and the adult-onset form.

Rodrigo T. Starosta, Marisa W Friederich, Graeme Preston et al. · 1 citation
Aug 2026

Multilevel impairment of mitochondrial respiration in inclusion body myositis.

Oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) is a central function and a key indicator of mitochondrial fitness, yet studies in human tissue remain limited. Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is a progressive myopathy that lies at the intersection of aging, inflammation and mitochondrial dysfunction. We aimed to perform a comprehensive profiling of mitochondrial respiration in muscle tissue from patients with IBM. A wide battery of complementary approaches from RNA level to high-resolution respirometry on permeabilized muscle fibers was employed. The relationship between mitochondrial respiration, mitochondrial content, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) abnormalities and mitophagy was examined, along with the correlation with various clinical parameters to determine their clinical relevance. The study included a total of 67 patients with IBM and 45 controls. On high resolution respirometry of permeabilized muscle fibers, IBM samples exhibited reduced maximal mitochondrial respiration per tissue weight in State 3 (high substrates, high ADP) and uncoupled state with decreased coupling efficiency and higher leak control ratios. When adjusting for citrate synthase reflecting mitochondrial content, male patients had decreased State 3 intrinsic respiration, whereas female patients had greater intrinsic respiration under leak states. Complex I activity was decreased mainly in female patients, in whom complex II control ratio positively correlated with disease duration and severity. IBM was further associated with decreased RNA levels of all complexes, and lower protein expression of complex I, III, IV and V, likely related to the lower mtDNA content seen in IBM samples. Regarding the production of reactive oxygen species, IBM samples exhibited lower maximal H2O2 emission, accompanied by a higher total antioxidant capacity that positively correlated with disease duration in female patients. Lastly, correlation analyses suggested that impaired mitochondrial respiration, altered mitophagy, and reduced mtDNA content are interconnected in IBM and maybe of clinical significance. IBM is characterized by multifaceted, clinically relevant impairments in mitochondrial respiration. Future studies should further explore underlying pathomechanisms and the variation of mitochondrial respiration by disease stage.

Ibrahim Shammas, Hazem Iaali, J. Watzlawik et al. · 0 citations