A Commentary on Mitophagy

Mitophagy is the process of selecting and breaking down worn mitochondria. There are hundreds of mitochondria in every cell, and regular removal of damaged mitochondrial followed by replacement through replication of viable mitochondria is needed in order to prevent harm to cell functions. Unfortunately, mitophagy appears to become less effective with age, for a variety of reasons, including changes in mitochondrial dynamics, and failures in broader autophagic processes responsible for moving mitochondria to a lysosome for enzymatic deconstruction. Numerous research groups aim to produce small molecule drugs or supplements capable of improving mitochondrial function in later life by improving the operation of mitophagy, and a range of approaches exist that appear to produce incremental benefits, such as mitoQ and urolithin A. As of yet, producing a greater positive impact than that resulting from exercise has proven to be a challenge, however. The principal process by which overall mitochondrial quality is maintained is through selective culling of dysfunctional and damaged organelles by mitochondrial autophagy, or mitophagy. It is posited that age-related deterioration in mitophagy, and the consequent interruption of mitochondrial quality control, can contribute to adverse aging phenotypes partly because of increased elaboration of mitochondria-derived ROS from improperly retained damaged organelles. A corollary to this hypothesis is that improving the overall fitne...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs