Mitochondria and Reactive Oxygen Species: The Therapeutic Balance of Powers for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy

• Published in: Cells (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 13; no. 7; p. 574
• Main Authors: Casati, Silvia Rosanna, Cervia, Davide, Roux-Biejat, Paulina, Moscheni, Claudia, Perrotta, Cristiana, De Palma, Clara
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 01.04.2024
• Subjects: Adipose tissue; Adipose tissues; Animal models; antioxidant defense; Biosynthesis; Care and treatment; Clinical trials; Dehydrogenases; Diagnosis; Duchenne muscular dystrophy; Duchenne's muscular dystrophy; Dystrophin; Energy balance; Enzymes; Epigenetics; Fatty acids; Health aspects; Homeostasis; Inflammation; Kinases; Measurement; Metabolism; Mitochondria; mitophagy; Muscle contraction; Muscular dystrophy; Mutation; Oxidative stress; Proteins; Reactive oxygen species; Recovery of function; Respiration; Sarcolemma; skeletal muscle; Italy; mitophagy; Duchenne muscular dystrophy; mitochondria; redox homeostasis; antioxidant defense; skeletal muscle; DMD therapies; oxidative stress
• ISSN: 2073-4409; 2073-4409
• DOI: 10.3390/cells13070574

Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a genetic progressive muscle-wasting disorder that leads to rapid loss of mobility and premature death. The absence of functional dystrophin in DMD patients reduces sarcolemma stiffness and increases contraction damage, triggering a cascade of events leading to muscle cell degeneration, chronic inflammation, and deposition of fibrotic and adipose tissue. Efforts in the last decade have led to the clinical approval of novel drugs for DMD that aim to restore dystrophin function. However, combination therapies able to restore dystrophin expression and target the myriad of cellular events found impaired in dystrophic muscle are desirable. Muscles are higher energy consumers susceptible to mitochondrial defects. Mitochondria generate a significant source of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and they are, in turn, sensitive to proper redox balance. In both DMD patients and animal models there is compelling evidence that mitochondrial impairments have a key role in the failure of energy homeostasis. Here, we highlighted the main aspects of mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress in DMD and discussed the recent findings linked to mitochondria/ROS-targeted molecules as a therapeutic approach. In this respect, dual targeting of both mitochondria and redox homeostasis emerges as a potential clinical option in DMD.