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PETBioNewsNewsMitochondrial sensors highlight the role of exercise in avoiding chronic disease

BioNews

Mitochondrial sensors highlight the role of exercise in avoiding chronic disease

Published 10 September 2021 posted in News and appears in BioNews 1112

Author

Bethany Muller

PET BioNews

New research detailing how mitochondria maintain proper function could lead to improved treatments for conditions such as Alzheimer's and diabetes...

New research detailing how mitochondria maintain proper function could lead to improved treatments for conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and diabetes.

Mitochondria were found to contain sensors that are involved in the process called mitophagy, whereby damaged or dysfunctional mitochondria are recognised and broken down. These sensors, termed mitoAMPK, are activated under conditions of energetic stress, for example during exercise or fasting.

'Mitochondria are the centre of the universe to me, since literally all cells in our body rely on mitochondria for energy production and must have a bulletproof system to ensure the powerhouses are functioning properly,' said author Professor Zhen Yan from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. 'Chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart failure and Alzheimer's disease that catastrophically impact so many individuals, families and the whole society are caused by problems of the mitochondria in the cells.'

Professor Yan's group established that there are different forms of the mitoAMPK, found in the outer mitochondrial membranes of different cell types. This discovery has advanced broader understanding of mitophagy by demonstrating how mitochondria in precise locations can respond to local environmental cues.

The findings help explain why regular exercise can be beneficial for reducing risk and severity for many chronic diseases and may also be useful in developing new drug treatments or understanding how current drugs work. For example, the authors showed in mouse models that metformin, a common first-line treatment for diabetes, activates mitoAMPK in skeletal muscles only.

'We have developed genetic models for pinpointing the key steps of mitoAMPK activation and are on our way to discover the magic molecules that are controlled by mitoAMPK,' said Professor Yan. 'Society should definitely take advantage of these findings to promote regular exercise for health and disease prevention and develop effective exercise-mimetic drugs.'

Professor Yan and his colleagues will next aim to establish the role of this mitochondrial sensor-based quality control system in other conditions and treatments.

The report was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academies of Science.

Sources and References

  • 10/09/2021
    Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
    Mitochondria-localised AMPK responds to local energetics and contributes to exercise and energetic stress-induced mitophagy
  • 08/09/2021
    University of Virginia
    Discovery about cells 'batteries' boosts battle against many diseases
  • 08/09/2021
    CBS19 News
    Research into mitochondria may help in treating non-communicable diseases

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