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Articles

Microscope in Laboratory

RBCs bind mitochondrial
DNA to prevent inflammation

Am J Respir Crit Care Med 

(2018)

Circulating red blood cells homeostatically bind mitochondrial DNA, via TLR9 to maintain immune quiescence and protect against lung injury.

Medical Test Tubes

Science Translational Medicine (2021)

Science Translational Medicine (2021)

 Human RBCs express TLR9 and bind extracellular DNA; in sepsis and COVID-19 this promotes immune activation and anemia.

Scientist with Test Tubes

RBCs as Reservoirs of Tumor DNA

AJP – Lung

(2024)

Tumor-derived DNA was detected on RBCs from lung cancer patients, supporting RBCs as a new liquid biopsy substrate for early cancer detection.

Lab Experiment with Flask

Human RBCs Express the RNA Sensor TLR7

Scientific Reports 

(2024)

RBCs were found to express TLR7 and bind RNA, revealing a previously unrecognized RNA-sensing function with implications for viral disease.

Scientist with Test Tubes

RBCs Capture & Deliver Bacterial DNA in Sepsis

Journal of Clinical Investigation (2025)

Red blood cells capture microbial DNA and deliver it to drive immune responses, uncovering a new mechanism of immune activation during polymicrobial sepsis.

Laboratory

HPV DNA on RBCs in Cervical Cancer

Obstetrics & Gynecology

(2025)

First clinical evidence that HPV DNA is detectable on RBCs in cervical cancer patients, highlighting their potential as a viral DNA biopsy source.

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