Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40476824›Full record

ArticleBrain : a journal of neurology2025

Misdirected yet intact TREX1 exonuclease activity causes human cerebral and systemic small vessel disease.

Sarah McGlasson, Katy Reid, Anna Klingseisen, Bastien Rioux, Samuel Chauvin, Cathrine A Miner, Joe Holley, Deborah Forbes, Bethany Geary, Jeffrey Kimber and 6 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Brain : a journal of neurology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Autoinflammatory syndromes of STING and TREX1 dysfunction.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2026
    Review
  2. The enigma of vascular dementia: current state and emerging perspectives.Journal of neural transmission (Vienna, Austria : 1996) · 2026
    Review
  3. First case ofFrontiers in immunology · 2026
    Article
  4. bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025
    Article
  5. Review
  6. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

16 authors.

Sarah McGlassonCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-0077-0991
Katy ReidCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.
Anna KlingseisenCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.
Bastien RiouxCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-0292-259X
Samuel ChauvinRVCL-S Research Center and Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-0232-751X
Cathrine A MinerRVCL-S Research Center and Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA.
Joe HolleyRVCL-S Research Center and Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA.
Deborah ForbesCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-2584-0236
Bethany GearyMRC protein phosphorylation Unit, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 5EH, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-5592-5532
Jeffrey KimberCrawley Hospital, Sussex and Surrey NHS Trust, Crawley RH11 7DH, UK.
Katrina WoodNational Renal Complement Therapeutics Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals, National Health Service Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4LP, UK.
Candice RoufosseDepartment of Immunology and Inflammation, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London W12 0NN, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-6490-4290
Colin SmithCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-4507-5132
David KavanaghNational Renal Complement Therapeutics Centre, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals, National Health Service Foundation Trust, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4LP, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-4718-0072
Jonathan MinerRVCL-S Research Center and Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Perelman School of Medicine, Pennsylvania, PA 19104, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-9551-2962
David P J HuntCentre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH16 4SB, UK.ORCID 0000-0003-4230-0207

Funding

Mechanisms of STING-associated immunodeficiencyR01AI143982 · NIAID · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI Jonathan J Miner · 2019 to 2026
$4.6M
Role of TREX1 in age-related hereditary leukoencephalopathyR01NS131480 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI Jonathan J Miner · 2023 to 2026
$3.2M
Contributions of IRF5 to Chikungunya Viral ArthritisK08AR070918 · NIAMS · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · PI MINER, JONATHAN J · 2017 to 2021
$612k
Alzheimer's ResearchAlzheimer's Research UKAlzheimer's SocietyClayco FoundationMRC Clinical Research 12619797_12619802MRF_NIAID NIH HHS R01 AI143982NIAMS NIH HHS K08 AR070918NIH HHS K08AR070918NIH HHS R01AI143982NIH HHS R01NS131480NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS131480Rheumatology Research FoundationScientist DevelopmentUK Dementia Research InstituteWellcome TrustWellcome Trust 215621/Z/19/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Retinal vasculopathy with cerebral leukoencephalopathy and systemic manifestations (RVCL-S) is an incurable microvascular disease caused by C-terminus truncation of the TREX1 exonuclease. There is a pressing need to understand disease mechanisms and identify therapeutic targets. We evaluated TREX1 sequencing data from 469 229 UK Biobank participants together with RVCL-S-related microvascular clinical and imaging outcomes. We show that mono-allelic truncating mutations in TREX1 require intact nuclease activity in order to cause endothelial disease. Differential proteomics identifies loss of interaction with endoplasmic reticulum insertion proteins such as Guided Entry of Tail-Anchored Proteins Factor 3 as a major consequence of pathogenic TREX1 truncation, and this altered trafficking results in the unregulated presence of enzymatically active TREX1 in the nucleus. In endothelial cells with a patient mutation, mislocalized yet enzymatically active TREX1 causes accumulation of a spectrum of DNA damage. These pathological changes can be rescued by inhibiting exonuclease activity. In summary, our data implicate exonuclease-dependent DNA damage in endothelial cells as a key therapeutic target in the pathogenesis of RVCL-S.

Indexed as

Cerebral Small Vessel DiseasesExodeoxyribonucleasesPhosphoproteinsRetinal DiseasesDNA DamageEndothelial CellsFemaleHereditary Central Nervous System Demyelinating DiseasesHumansMaleMiddle AgedMutationVascular DiseasesExodeoxyribonucleasesPhosphoproteinsthree prime repair exonuclease 1cell cycleDNA damageendothelialexonucleasevascular dementia

Identifiers

PMID40476824
PMCPMC12316019

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

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.