Research Progress of Mitochondrial Transfer in Post-stroke Cognitive Impairment

Abstract

Stroke often leads to persistent post-stroke cognitive impairment (PSCI), which mainly manifests as impairment in learning and memory. The pathogenesis remains unclear as present, but it is closely related to mitochondrial dysfunction, and healthy mitochondria are essential for neuronal survival. Recent studies have shown that intercellular mitochondrial transfer can be linked to stroke through increasing neuronal viability, enhancing mitochondrial metabolism, and modulating neuroinflammation, thereby improving cognitive impairment. This review overviews the mechanisms of mitochondrial transfer and the key role of intercellular mitochondrial transfer in PSCI, and discusses that mitochondrial transplantation may serve as a novel therapeutic intervention for PSCI, providing references for its clinical management.

Keywords

• stroke|cognition disorders|mitochondrial transfer|tunneling nanotubes|extracellular vesicles|gap junction|review