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MINI REVIEW article

Front. Hematol.
Sec. Red Cells, Iron and Erythropoiesis
Volume 4 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/frhem.2025.1540152
This article is part of the Research Topic Unraveling Molecular Pathways in Stress Erythropoiesis for Therapeutic Advancements View all 4 articles

The role of Glucocorticoids in Erythropoiesis

Provisionally accepted
Lars Lee Perry Hanssen Lars Lee Perry Hanssen 1,2*Deena Iskander Deena Iskander 3,4*
  • 1 Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
  • 2 UKRI Laboratory of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
  • 3 Centre for Haematology, Department of Immunology & Inflammation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
  • 4 Department of Paediatric Haematology, St Mary’s Hospital, Imperial College Healthcare Trust, London, United Kingdom

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Erythropoiesis is a critical homeostatic process responsible for the production of red blood cells, essential for oxygen delivery to tissues. This review provides a brief overview of erythropoiesis: the maturation of hematopoietic stem cells to circulating red blood cells. We examine the role of glucocorticoids (GCs) in modulating this process, highlighting how they influence erythroid progenitor proliferation and differentiation through various mechanisms, including transcriptional repression and non-genomic pathways. GCs have been shown to inhibit erythroid differentiation while promoting progenitor cell expansion, particularly under stress conditions such as anaemia or blood loss. These mechanisms are likely central to understanding the role of GC signalling in the treatment of hematological diseases such as Diamond-Blackfan anaemia syndrome and myelodysplastic syndromes, emphasizing the need for further research into the genetic and epigenetic factors affecting individual responses to glucocorticoid therapy. By elucidating the intricate interplay between GCs and erythropoiesis, this work aims to provide insights into potential therapeutic strategies for managing disorders related to red blood cell underproduction.

    Keywords: glucocorticoids1, Diamond-Blackfan anemia2, erythropoiesis3, nuclear receptors4, hematopoiesis5. (Min.5-Max. 8

    Received: 05 Dec 2024; Accepted: 03 Feb 2025.

    Copyright: © 2025 Hanssen and Iskander. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Lars Lee Perry Hanssen, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom
    Deena Iskander, Centre for Haematology, Department of Immunology & Inflammation, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.