Role of circulating mitochondria in venous thrombosis in glioblastoma

Many patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) develop deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary emboli. Cell-free circulating mitochondria increase after brain injury and are associated with coagulopathy.

This study evaluated whether mitochondria play a role in the GBM-induced hypercoagulable state.

We examined the correlation between cell-free circulating mitochondria and venous thrombosis in patients with GBM and the impact of mitochondria on venous thrombosis in mice with inferior vena cava stenosis.

Using plasma samples of 82 patients with GBM, we found that patients with GBM had a higher number of mitochondria in their plasma (GBM with venous thromboembolism [VTE],: 2.8 × 10⁷ mitochondria/mL; GBM without VTE, 1.9 × 10⁷ mitochondria/mL) than that in healthy control subjects (n = 17) (0.3 × 10⁷ mitochondria/mL). Interestingly, patients with GBM and VTE (n = 41) had a higher mitochondria concentration than patients with GBM without VTE (n = 41). In a murine model of inferior vena cava stenosis, intravenous delivery of mitochondria resulted in an increased rate of venous thrombosis compared with that in controls (70% and 28%, respectively). Mitochondria-induced venous thrombi were neutrophil-rich and contained more platelets than those in control thrombi. Furthermore, as mitochondria are the only source of cardiolipin in circulation, we compared the concentration of anticardiolipin immunoglobulin G in plasma samples of patients with GBM and found a higher concentration in patients with VTE (optical density, 0.69 ± 0.04) than in those without VTE (optical density, 0.51 ± 0.04).

We concluded that mitochondria might play a role in the GBM-induced hypercoagulable state. We propose that quantifying circulating mitochondria or anticardiolipin antibody concentrations in patients with GBM might identify patients at increased risk of VTE.