A new study in the journal Nature Aging shows that genetically engineered mitochondria can convert light energy into chemical energy that cells can use to live longer. The findings shed light on important mechanisms in the aging process and are more science fiction than science.
Andrew Wojtovich is an associate professor of anesthesiology and perioperative medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center.
The study found that boosting metabolism using light-poweredMitochondrial gave laboratory worms longer, healthier lives. We will be able to further study mitochondria and identify new ways to treat age related diseases thanks to these findings.
Most cells in the body have mitochondria. The compound that provides energy for key functions in the cell, such as muscle contraction and the electrical impulses that help nerve cells communicate with each other, can be found in the cells' mitochondria.
A number of reactions are made possible by the exchange of protons across a membranes that separates different compartments in the mitochondria. A number of age-related diseases, such as neurodegenerative disorders, have been shown to be caused by the decline in the potential of the membranes.
The fruit fly Drosophila has long been a research tool used by scientists to understand basic biological principles.
A team of researchers from the U.S. and Germany used an existing research tool to carry out the experiments. Researchers have been able to study patterns of brain activity with the help of optogenetics.
The team first described their work in a 2020 paper in the journal EMBO Reports.
The energy from the light to charge the mitochondria was used in the new study. The increase in lifespan of the roundworms was due to the increase in lifespan of the mitochondria-on process.
Brandon Berry, a PhD student at the University of Washington, is the first author of the two studies. Berry said thatMitochondria are similar to industrial power plants in that they produce useful energy for the cell.
We connected a solar panel to the power plant's infrastructure. The solar panel is used for optogenetics. Light energy can be harnessed by the normalMitochondrial machinery to provide theATP.
The study gives researchers more insight into the role that mitochondria play in the human body, a topic that the scientific community is only now beginning to understand. A new method to study the environment of a living cell has been created by the study. This could be an important platform to study the function of mitochondria.
Berry said that they need to understand more about the behavior of the mitochondria in an animal. In the current study, first in worms, then in human cells, and finally in rodents. Future research will be able to target the most likely players in human disease.
The lifespan of C. elegans has been extended by optogenetic rejuvenation of the mitochondria.
Journal information: EMBO Reports , Nature Aging
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