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Mitochondrial Content (mitochondrial + content)
Selected AbstractsRegulation of skeletal muscle mitochondrial function: genes to proteinsACTA PHYSIOLOGICA, Issue 4 2010I. R. Lanza Abstract The impact of ageing on mitochondrial function and the deterministic role of mitochondria on senescence continue to be topics of vigorous debate. Many studies report that skeletal muscle mitochondrial content and function are reduced with ageing and metabolic diseases associated with insulin resistance. However, an accumulating body of literature suggests that physical inactivity typical of ageing may be a more important determinant of mitochondrial function than chronological age, per se. Reports of age-related declines in mitochondrial function have spawned a vast body of literature devoted to understanding the underlying mechanisms. These mechanisms include decreased abundance of mtDNA, reduced mRNA levels, as well as decreased synthesis and expression of mitochondrial proteins, ultimately resulting in decreased function of the whole organelle. Effective therapies to prevent, reverse or delay the onset of the aforementioned mitochondrial changes, regardless of their inevitability or precise underlying causes, require an intimate understanding of the processes that regulate mitochondrial biogenesis, which necessitates the coordinated regulation of nuclear and mitochondrial genomes. Herein we review the current thinking on regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis by transcription factors and transcriptional co-activators and the role of hormones and exercise in initiating this process. We review how exercise may help preserve mitochondrial content and functionality across the lifespan, and how physical inactivity is emerging as a major determinant of many age-associated changes at the level of the mitochondrion. We also review evidence that some mitochondrial changes with ageing are independent of exercise or physical activity and appear to be inevitable consequences of old age. [source] Mitochondrial function and endocrine diseasesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION, Issue 4 2007R. Stark Abstract Mitochondria are fundamental for oxidative energy production and impairment of their functionality can lead to reduced ATP synthesis and contribute to initiation of apoptosis. Endocrine tissues critically rely on oxidative phosphorylation so that mitochondrial abnormalities may either be causes or consequences of diminished hormone production or action. Abnormalities typical for diseases caused by mitochondrial DNA mutations such as Kearns,Sayre syndrome or mitochondrial encephalomyopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke,like episodes syndrome are also seen in certain endocrine diseases. Lack or excess of thyroid hormones, major ubiquitous regulators of mitochondrial content and activity, cause muscular abnormalities and multisystem disorders. Mitochondria are a further prerequisite for steroidogenesis as well as insulin secretion and action. Recent studies showed that reduced mitochondrial ATP synthesis in skeletal muscle is a feature of certain hereditary and acquired forms of insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus. Finally, ageing is not only accompanied by various degrees of hormonal deficiency and insulin resistance but is also associated with a progressive decline of mitochondrial number and function. Future research is needed to examine whether mitochondrial abnormalities are the cause or consequence of ageing and frequent metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus, and to address mitochondria as a target for novel therapeutic regimes. [source] Signs of critical illness polyneuropathy and myopathy can be seen early in the ICU courseACTA ANAESTHESIOLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 6 2009K. AHLBECK Background: Critical illness polyneuropathy and myopathy (CIPNM) is recognized as a common condition that develops in the intensive care unit (ICU). It may lead to a prolonged hospital stay with subsequent increased ICU and hospital costs. Knowledge of predisposing factors is insufficient and the temporal pattern of CIPNM has not been well described earlier. This study investigated patients with critical illness in need of prolonged mechanical ventilation, describing comprehensively the time course of changes in muscle and nerve neurophysiology, histology and mitochondrial oxidative function. Methods: Ten intensive care patients were investigated 4, 14 and 28 days after the start of mechanical ventilation. Laboratory tests, neurophysiological examination, muscle biopsies and clinical examinations were performed. Neurophysiological criteria for CIPNM were noted and measurements for mitochondrial content, mitochondrial respiratory enzymes and markers of oxidative stress were performed. Results: While all patients showed pathologic changes in neurophysiologic measurements, only patients with sepsis and steroid treatment (5/5) fulfilled the CIPNM criteria. The presence of CIPNM did not affect the outcome, and the temporal pattern of CIPNM was not uniform. All CIP changes occurred early in ICU care, while myopathy changes appeared somewhat later. Citrate synthase was decreased between days 4 and 14, and mitochondrial superoxide dismutase was increased. Conclusion: With comprehensive examination over time, signs of CIPNM can be seen early in ICU course, and appear more likely to occur in patients with sepsis and corticosteroid treatment. [source] Diminished contraction-induced intracellular signaling towards mitochondrial biogenesis in aged skeletal muscleAGING CELL, Issue 4 2009Vladimir Ljubicic Summary The intent of this study was to determine whether aging affects signaling pathways involved in mitochondrial biogenesis in response to a single bout of contractile activity. Acute stimulation (1 Hz, 5 min) of the tibialis anterior (TA) resulted in a greater rate of fatigue in old (36 month), compared to young (6 month) F344XBN rats, which was associated with reduced ATP synthesis and a lower mitochondrial volume. To investigate fiber type-specific signaling, the TA was sectioned into red (RTA) and white (WTA) portions, possessing two- to 2.5-fold differences in mitochondrial content. The expression and contraction-mediated phosphorylation of p38, MKK3/6, CaMKII and AMPK, were assessed. Kinase protein expression tended to be higher in fiber sections with lower mitochondrial content, such as the WTA, relative to the RTA muscle, and this was exaggerated in tissues from senescent, compared to young animals. At rest, kinase activation was generally similar between young and old animals, despite the age-related variations in mitochondrial volume. In response to contractile activity, age did not influence the signaling of these kinases in the high-oxidative RTA muscle. However, in the low-oxidative WTA muscle, contraction-induced kinase activation was attenuated in old animals, despite the greater metabolic stress imposed by contractile activity in this muscle. Thus, the reduction of contraction-evoked kinase phosphorylation in muscle from old animals is fiber type-specific, and depends on factors which are, in part, independent of the metabolic milieu within the contracting fibers. These findings imply that the downstream consequences of kinase signaling are reduced in aging muscle. [source] Mitochondrial function and apoptotic susceptibility in aging skeletal muscleAGING CELL, Issue 1 2008Béatrice Chabi Summary During aging, skeletal muscle undergoes sarcopenia, a condition characterized by a loss of muscle cell mass and alterations in contractile function. The origin of these decrements is unknown, but evidence suggests that they can be partly attributed to mitochondrial dysfunction. To characterize the nature of this dysfunction, we investigated skeletal muscle contractile properties, subsarcolemmal (SS) and intermyofibrillar (IMF) mitochondrial biogenesis and function, as well as apoptotic susceptibility in young (6 months old) and senescent (36 months old) Fischer 344 Brown Norway rats. Muscle mass and maximal force production were significantly lower in the 36-month group, which is indicative of a sarcopenic phenotype. Furthermore, contractile activity in situ revealed greater fatigability in the 36-month compared to the 6-month animals. This decrement could be partially accounted for by a 30% lower mitochondrial content in fast-twitch muscle from 36-month animals, as well as lower protein levels of the transcriptional coactivator peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor , coactivator-1,. Enzyme activities and glutamate-induced oxygen consumption rates in isolated SS and IMF mitochondria were similar between age groups. However, mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) production during state 3 respiration was ~1.7-fold greater in mitochondria isolated from 36-month compared to 6-month animals, and was accompanied by a 1.8-fold increase in the DNA repair enzyme 8-oxoguanine glycosylase 1 in fast-twitch muscle. Basal rates of release of cytochrome c and endonuclease G in SS mitochondria were 3.5- to 7-fold higher from senescent animals. These data suggest that the age-related sarcopenia and muscle fatigability are associated with enhanced ROS production, increased mitochondrial apoptotic susceptibility and reduced transcriptional drive for mitochondrial biogenesis. [source] In vivo31P MRS detection of an alkaline inorganic phosphate pool with short T1 in human resting skeletal muscleNMR IN BIOMEDICINE, Issue 8 2010H. E. Kan Abstract Non-invasive determination of mitochondrial content is an important objective in clinical and sports medicine. 31P MRS approaches to obtain information on this parameter at low field strength typically require in-magnet exercise. Direct observation of the intra-mitochondrial inorganic phosphate (Pi) pool in resting muscle would constitute an alternative, simpler method. In this study, we exploited the higher spectral resolution and signal-to-noise at 7T to investigate the MR visibility of this metabolite pool. 31P in vivo MR spectra of the resting soleus (SOL) muscle were obtained with 1H MR image-guided surface coil localization (six volunteers) and of the SOL and tibialis anterior (TA) muscle using 2D CSI (five volunteers). A resonance at a frequency 0.38,ppm downfield from the cytosolic Pi resonance (Pi1; pH 7.0,±,0.04) was reproducibly detected in the SOL muscle in all subjects and conditionally attributed to the intra-mitochondrial Pi pool (Pi2; pH 7.3,±,0.07). In the SOL muscle, the Pi2/Pi1 ratio was 1.6 times higher compared to the TA muscle in the same individual. Localized 3D CSI results showed that the Pi2 peak was present in voxels well away from blood vessels. Determination of the T1 of the two Pi pools in a single individual using adiabatic excitation of the spectral region around 5,ppm yielded estimates of 4.3,±,0.4 s vs 1.4,±,0.5 s for Pi1 and Pi2, respectively. Together, these results suggest that the intra-mitochondrial Pi pool in resting human skeletal muscle may be visible with 31P MRS at high field. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Local energetic regulation of sarcoplasmic and myosin ATPase is differently impaired in rats with heart failureTHE JOURNAL OF PHYSIOLOGY, Issue 21 2008Frederic Joubert Local control of ATP/ADP ratio is essential for efficient functioning of cellular ATPases. Since creatine kinase (CK) activity and mitochondrial content are reduced in heart failure (HF), and cardiomyocyte ultrastructure is altered, we hypothesized that these changes may affect the local energetic control of two major cardiac ATPases, the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca2+ -ATPase (SERCA) and the myosin ATPase. Heart failure was induced by aortic stenosis in rats. Electron microscopy confirmed that failing cardiomyocytes had intracellular disorganization, with fewer contacts between mitochondria and myofibrils. Despite normal SERCA protein content, spontaneous Ca2+ release measurements using Fluo-4 on saponin-permeabilized cardiomyocytes showed a lower SR loading in HF even when endogenous CK and mitochondria were fully activated. Similarly, in permeabilized fibres, SR Ca2+ loading supported by SR-bound CK and mitochondria was significantly reduced in HF (by 49% and 40%, respectively, 43% when both systems were activated, P < 0.05). Alkaline phosphatase treatment had no effect, but glycolytic substrates normalized calcium loading in HF to the sham level. The control by CK and mitochondria of the local ATP/ADP ratio close to the myosin ATPase (estimated by rigor tension) was also significantly impaired in HF fibres (by 32% and 46%, respectively). However, while the contributions of mitochondria and CK to local ATP regeneration were equally depressed in HF for the control of SERCA, mitochondrial contribution was more severely impaired than CK (P < 0.05) with respect to myofilament regulation. These data show that local energetic regulation of essential ATPases is severely impaired in heart failure, and undergoes a complex remodelling as a result of a decreased activity of the ATP-generating systems and cytoarchitecture disorganization. [source] Mitochondrial biogenesis: Which part of "NO" do we understand?BIOESSAYS, Issue 6 2003Scot C. Leary A recent paper by Nisoli et al.1 provides the first evidence that elevated levels of nitric oxide (NO) stimulate mitochondrial biogenesis in a number of cell lines via a soluble guanylate-cyclase-dependent signaling pathway that activates PGC1, (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor , coactivator-1,), a master regulator of mitochondrial content. These results raise intriguing possibilities for a role of NO in modulating mitochondrial content in response to physiological stimuli such as exercise or cold exposure. However, whether this signaling cascade represents a widespread mechanism by which mammalian tissues regulate mitochondrial content, and how it might integrate with other pathways that control PGC1, expression, remain unclear. BioEssays 25:538,541, 2003. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] |