AMD Starts in the Mitochondria: The Hidden Quality-Control Failure Driving Retinal Aging
This Deep Dive reframes age-related macular degeneration (AMD) as more than “aging eyes” or vascular/inflammatory drift. The core argument: AMD may be a mitochondrial quality-control disease, especially in the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), which is the high-demand support layer that keeps photoreceptors alive. As mitochondrial dynamics break down (excess fission, reduced fusion, reduced biogenesis, failing mitophagy), damaged mitochondria accumulate, ROS rises, mitochondrial danger signals spill into immune pathways, and complement activation becomes chronic — creating a self-reinforcing…
The skinny
The skinny isn't ready yet — notes appear once the transcript is processed.