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Structural and biomechanical basis of mitochondrial movement in eukaryotic cells

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posted on 2016-04-12, 00:00 authored by Min Wu, Aruna Kalyanasundaram, Jie Zhu
Abstract: Mitochondria serve as energy-producing organelles in eukaryotic cells. In addition to providing the energy supply for cells, the mitochondria are also involved in other processes, such as proliferation, differentiation, information transfer, and apoptosis, and play an important role in regulation of cell growth and the cell cycle. In order to achieve these functions, the mitochondria need to move to the corresponding location. Therefore, mitochondrial movement has a crucial role in normal physiologic activity, and any mitochondrial movement disorder will cause irreparable damage to the organism. For example, recent studies have shown that abnormal movement of the mitochondria is likely to be the reason for Charcot–Marie–Tooth disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, and schizophrenia. So, in the cell, especially in the particular polarized cell, the appropriate distribution of mitochondria is crucial to the function and survival of the cell. Mitochondrial movement is mainly associated with the cytoskeleton and related proteins. However, those components play different roles according to cell type. In this paper, we summarize the structural basis of mitochondrial movement, including microtubules, actin filaments, motor proteins, and adaptin, and review studies of the biomechanical mechanisms of mitochondrial movement in different types of cells.

Funding

This project was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (11202170 to JZ), China Postdoctoral Foundation (2012T50823 to JZ), Scientific Foundation of Provincial Sports Bureau of Shaanxi (13001 to JZ), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (QN2011123 to JZ). The authors would also like to acknowledge Prof Wang GD (Biophysics) and Prof Ouyang WQ (Veterinary Medicine) at Northwest A&F University for their suggestions and support.

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Publisher Statement

© 2013 Wu et al. This work is published by Dove Medical Press Limited, and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution – Non Commercial (unported, v3.0) License. The full terms of the License are available at http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. Permissions beyond the scope of the License are administered by Dove Medical Press Limited. Information on how to request permission may be found at: http://www.dovepress.com/permissions.php

Publisher

Dove Medical Press

Language

  • en_US

issn

1178-2013

Issue date

2013-01-01

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