Mitochondria-derived extracellular vesicles mediate Alzheimer's disease pathology through transmitting microglial Ggt1.
Li Yun Y, Xia Xiaohuan X, Sun Yiyan Y, Jia Kailing K et al.
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) can modify pathological progression in Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common neurodegenerative disease in older adults, by spreading pathogenic factors. However, the function of mitovesicles (mtVs)-a recently identified subset of EVs-in AD remain unknown. Here we show that release of mtVs is enriched in brain tissue from patients with AD and 5×FAD mice. Administration of 5×FAD mouse brain-derived mtVs (ADmtVs) induced AD-like behavioral and pathological changes in wild-type mice and accelerated disease progression of AD mice. Moreover, the release of mtVs was regulated by mitochondrial respiratory metabolism, and blocking the release of mtVs significantly alleviated AD-like phenotypes. Proteomic analysis identified Ggt1 as a highly enriched protein in ADmtVs. Inhibiting Ggt1 expression and activity mitigated AD-like phenotypes of 5×FAD mice and delayed ADmtV-induced disease progression, suggesting Ggt1 as a pathological cargo of ADmtVs. Our findings highlight the pathological roles of mtVs in AD and highlight mtVs and Ggt1 as potential therapeutic targets.