Mitochondrial Ferritin Expression in Adult Mouse Tissues

Paolo Santambrogio ¹, Giorgio Biasiotto ¹, Francesca Sanvito ¹, Stefano Olivieri ¹, Paolo Arosio ¹ and Sonia Levi ^1*

¹ DIBIT (PS,SL) and Department of Pathology (FS,SO), San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy; Section of Chemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy (GB,PA); and Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy (SL)

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: levi.sonia{at}hsr.it.

Submitted on May 10, 2007
Accepted on 25 June 2007

	Abstract

Mitochondrial ferritin (FtMt) is a novel ferritin type specifically targeted to mitochondria. In human it was found to be highly expressed in the testis and in sideroblasts from patients with sideroblastic anemia, but other organs have not been studied. To study its expression in the main organs of the mouse we first used RT-PCR and then produced recombinant mouse FtMt and specific antibodies. Immunohistochemistry analyses confirmed that FtMt is highly expressed in mouse testis, particularly in spermatocytes and interstitial Leydig cells. The protein was also identified in other organs, including heart, brain, spinal cord, kidney, pancreatic islet of Langherans, but not in liver and splenocytes, which have iron storage function and express high levels of cytosolic ferritins. The results indicate that the primary function of ferritin FtMt is not involved in storing cellular or body iron, but its association with cell types characterized by high metabolic activity and oxygen consumption suggests a role in protecting mitochondria from iron-dependent oxidative damage.

Key Words: mitochondrial ferritin, expression, iron, immunohistochemistry

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