microfluidics-assisted-selective-depolarization-of-axonal-mitochondria

Microfluidics-Assisted Selective Depolarization of Axonal Mitochondria

Mitochondria are the primary suppliers of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) in neurons. Mitochondrial dysfunction is a common phenotype in many ...

Technical University of Munich

Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology

Mitochondria are key players of cellular metabolism, Ca homeostasis, and apoptosis. The functionality of mitochondria is tightly regulated, and dysfunctional mitochondria are removed via mitophagy, a specialized form of autophagy that is compromised in hereditary forms of Parkinson's disease. Through mitophagy, cells are able to cope with mitochondrial stress until the damage becomes too great, which leads to the activation of pro-apoptotic BCL-2 family proteins located on the outer mitochondrial membrane. Active pro-apoptotic BCL-2 proteins facilitate the release of cytochrome  from the mitochondrial intermembrane space (IMS) into the cytosol, committing the cell to apoptosis by activating a cascade of cysteinyl-aspartate specific proteases (caspases). We are only beginning to understand how the choice between mitophagy and the activation of caspases is determined on the mitochondrial surface. Intriguingly in neurons, caspase activation also plays a non-apoptotic role in synaptic plasticity. Here we review the current knowledge on the interplay between mitophagy and caspase activation with a special focus on the central nervous system.

Kill one or kill the many: interplay between mitophagy and apoptosis.

PTEN-induced kinase 1 (PINK1) is a short-lived protein required for the removal of damaged mitochondria through Parkin translocation and mitophagy. Because the short half-life of PINK1 limits its ability to be trafficked into neurites, local translation is required for this mitophagy pathway to be active far from the soma. The Pink1 transcript is associated and cotransported with neuronal mitochondria. In concert with translation, the mitochondrial outer membrane proteins synaptojanin 2 binding protein (SYNJ2BP) and synaptojanin 2 (SYNJ2) are required for tethering Pink1 mRNA to mitochondria via an RNA-binding domain in SYNJ2. This neuron-specific adaptation for the local translation of PINK1 provides distal mitochondria with a continuous supply of PINK1 for the activation of mitophagy.

Simone Wanderoy

TUM Medical Graduate Center

Technical University of Munich

Microfluidics-Assisted Selective Depolarization of Axonal Mitochondria

Simone Wanderoy

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Technical University of Munich

Microfluidics-Assisted Selective Depolarization of Axonal Mitochondria

TUM Medical Graduate Center