ArticleAging cell2021
Mitochondrial DNA in extracellular vesicles declines with age.
Article in Aging cell, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 92 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
92 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 169 citations in OpenAlex.
- Stress and circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA: A systematic review of human studies, physiological considerations, and technical recommendations.Mitochondrion · 2021Pooled it
- Mechanistic reprogramming of the mtDNA-cGAS-STING axis in cellular senescence: from mitochondrial homeostatic disruption to inflammatory and immune outcomes.Biogerontology · 2026Review
- Extracellular vesicles and epigenetic aging clocks in tissue aging: an exosome-focused conceptual framework with a focus on skin.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2026Review
- Review
- A novel approach for age estimation based on blood mitochondrial DNA analysis.International journal of legal medicine · 2026Article
- Comprehensive genome sequencing associates elevated mitochondrial DNA and homoplasmy with early stage I of pancreatic cancer.iScience · 2026Article
- Mitochondrial Network Dynamics in Aging: Cellular Mechanisms, Intercellular Communication, and Their Impact on Tissue Adaptability.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Mitochondria-Derived Vesicles and Mitochondrial Extracellular Vesicles in Health and Cardiovascular Disease.Circulation research · 2026Review
- VAMP4/STX8 Mediate the Autophagic Secretion of Mitochondria and Promote TAMs Polarization in HNSCC.Journal of extracellular vesicles · 2026Article
- P2X7R Signaling and Differential Regulation of Neuroinflammatory and Behavior Responses in Male and Female Mice During Chronic Ethanol Exposure.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Therapeutic and diagnostic potential of extracellular vesicle (EV)-mediated intercellular transfer of mitochondria and mitochondrial components.Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism · 2026Review
- Myosteatosis in type 1 diabetes: immunometabolic mechanisms, biomarkers, and therapeutic targets.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Review
- The EV-mitochondrial outsourcing network as a therapeutic target for age-related testosterone deficiency: from network collapse to clinical intervention.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2026Review
- Nanoscale Delivery of MicroRNAs via Extracellular Vesicles: Mechanisms Potential in Modulating Cellular Senescence.International journal of nanomedicine · 2026Review
- Correlation of extracellular vesicle Alu RNA with brain aging and neuronal injury: a potential biomarker for brain aging.Annals of medicine · 2025Article
- Dissemination of Mitochondrial DNA Variants: Looking at the 'Bigger' Picture of the Tumour Microenvironment in Rectal Cancer Patients.Journal of extracellular biology · 2025Article
- Electron microscopy visualization of cell-free mitochondrial DNA-containing extracellular vesicles in human plasma, serum, and saliva.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2025Article
- The interface of geroscience with longitudinal health disparities research: a 20-year retrospective of the Healthy Aging in Neighborhoods of Diversity across the Life Span study.The journals of gerontology. Series A, Biological sciences and medical sciences · 2025Article
- Exploring the connection between the Mitochondrial DNA and the Circadian Rhythm: Insights into Mitochondrial Biogenesis and its Dynamics.Molecular biology reports · 2025Review
- Cell-Free Circulating Mitochondrial DNA Levels Following High-Frequency Jet Ventilation-A Post Hoc Analysis.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
32 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
The mitochondrial free radical theory of aging suggests that accumulating oxidative damage to mitochondria and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) plays a central role in aging. Circulating cell-free mtDNA (ccf-mtDNA) isolated from blood may be a biomarker of disease. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) are small (30-400 nm), lipid-bound vesicles capable of shuttling proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids as part of intercellular communication systems. Here, we report that a portion of ccf-mtDNA in plasma is encapsulated in EVs. To address whether EV mtDNA levels change with human age, we analyzed mtDNA in EVs from individuals aged 30-64 years cross-sectionally and longitudinally. EV mtDNA levels decreased with age. Furthermore, the maximal mitochondrial respiration of cultured cells was differentially affected by EVs from old and young donors. Our results suggest that plasma mtDNA is present in EVs, that the level of EV-derived mtDNA is associated with age, and that EVs affect mitochondrial energetics in an EV age-dependent manner.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.