High myopia is a leading cause of blindness worldwide, among which pathologic myopia, characterized by typical myopic macular degeneration, is the most detrimental. However, its pathogenesis remains largely unknown. Here, using a HuProt array, we first initiated a serological autoantibody profiling of high myopia and identified 18 potential autoantibodies, of which anti-LIMS1 autoantibody was validated by a customized focused microarray. Further subgroup analysis revealed its actual relevance to pathologic myopia, rather than simple high myopia without myopic macular degeneration. Mechanistically, anti-LIMS1 autoantibody predominantly belonged to IgG1/IgG2/IgG3 subclasses. Serum IgG obtained from patients with pathologic myopia could disrupt the barrier function of retinal pigment epithelial cells via cytoskeleton disorganization and tight junction component reduction, and also trigger a pro-inflammatory mediator cascade in retinal pigment epithelial cells, which were all attenuated by depletion of anti-LIMS1 autoantibody. Together, these data uncover a previously unrecognized autoimmune etiology of myopic macular degeneration in pathologic myopia.
LIM zinc finger domain containing 1 (LIMS1), an evolutionally conserved LIM domain adaptor protein, is implicated in diverse pathologies, including cancer and neurological disorders. However, its roles in cardiac diseases and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we explore the functions and mechanisms of LIMS1 in cardiac remodeling and heart failure. We identify the elevated LIMS1 expression in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and murine cardiomyocytes, suggesting that LIMS1 dysregulation contributes to cardiac pathology. Using CRISPR/Cas9 technology, we generate a zebrafish model of lims1 loss-of-function mutant, which exhibits severe cardiac chamber remodeling, systolic dysfunction, and premature mortality, demonstrating the essential role of lims1 in maintaining cardiac integrity. Transcriptomic profiling reveals the activation of the gp130/Jak1/Stat3 signaling in the lims1 -deficient hearts. Strikingly, pharmacological inhibition of Stat3 or c-Fos partially rescues cardiomyopathy phenotypes. Our findings reveal the underlying mechanism of lims1 deficiency-caused heart failure through gp130/Jak1/Stat3 hyperactivation, offering insights into cardiac remodeling and potential therapeutic strategies.