Zi Yan

Mrs. Zi Yan


Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

1Year (2026-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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1 April 2026 in Bioactive Materials
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
SLShiyu Li
Shiyu Li
ZYZi Yan
Zi Yan
XZXinwang Zhi
Xinwang Zhi
WZWeihan Zheng
Weihan Zheng
ZZZiqi Zhang
Ziqi Zhang
JSJiacan Su
Jiacan Su
Infrapatellar fat pad mesenchymal stem cells (IPFP-MSCs) extracellular vesicles (EVs) are found to be capable of accelerating Osteoarthritis (OA) progression. However, which pathways and which pathogenic EVs subgroups are involved are not defined. In our study we found that there were a higher percentage of TOMM20+ EV's within the total synovial fluid EV's from OA patients than from trauma patients as well as increased mtDNA content. This implicates the mitochondria derived EV sub-group - mitochondria derived vesicles (MDVs) as a potential driver in OA. We found with the single-cell data that MDVs may be secreted from IPFP-MSCs with VPS35. Furthermore, these cells were harvested from the body of the OA patient. IPFP-MSC derived MDVs can deliver exogenous mtDNA to chondrocytes by fusing directly, thus inhibiting chondrocyte matrix synthesis, inducing mitochondrial dysfunction, and activating pro-inflammatory signaling cascades in chondrocytes. Protein microarrays showed that MDVs delivered exogenous mtDNA to chondrocytes, which then activated the cGAS-STING pathway and downstream inflammatory mediators (TBK1, NF-κB, TNF-α). Intra-articular MDV injection worsened cartilage degradation and synovitis in OA rats but STING inhibition alleviated them. This study showed that IPFP-MSC-derived MDVs are essential for OA pathogenesis via mtDNA transfer and cGAS-STING pathway activation. These results show how the mitochondria and immune system talk to each other in the joints causing pain and destroying the cartilage, MDVs are new things that can tell us if someone has this disease and help doctors fix it. Pharmacological blockade of the cGAS-STING axis has shown therapeutic potential, providing a dual approach to mitigate mitochondrial stress and innate immune hyperactivation in OA.