Ziqian Xiang, Pengfei Zhang, Chunwang Jia, Rongkun Xu, Dingren Cao, Zhaoning Xu, Tingting Lu, Jingwei Liu, Xiaoxiong Wang, Cheng Qiu, Wenyang Fu, Weiwei Li, Lei Cheng, Qiang Yang, Shiqing Feng, Lianlei Wang, Yunpeng Zhao, Xinyu Liu
To date, several molecules have been found to facilitate iron influx, while the types of iron influx channels remain to be elucidated. Here, Piezo1 channel was identified as a key iron transporter in response to mechanical stress. Piezo1-mediated iron overload disturbed iron metabolism and exaggerated ferroptosis in nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs). Importantly, Piezo1-induced iron influx was independent of the transferrin receptor (TFRC), a well-recognized iron gatekeeper. Furthermore, pharmacological inactivation of Piezo1 profoundly reduced iron accumulation, alleviated mitochondrial ROS, and suppressed ferroptotic alterations in stimulation of mechanical stress...
March 29, 2024: Bone Research