The new study by Dr.
Zhen Yan of UVA and his colleagues reveals how our cells sense problems and control the quality of the cell’s “battery”, the mitochondria
.
Source: Dan Addison | UVA Health
A top exercise researcher at the University of Virginia School of Medicine revealed how our body ensures the normal functioning of cells
.
This discovery may open the door to better treatments for many common diseases, including Alzheimer's disease and diabetes
.
This new study by Dr.
Zhen Yan of the University of Virginia and his colleagues reveals how our cells sense problems and control the quality of the cell’s “battery”, the mitochondria
.
Zhen Yan has been seeking a better understanding of how mitochondria work for many years, and he called this new discovery the most exciting of his career
.
"The mitochondria is the center of the universe.
Because all the cells in the body rely on mitochondria for energy production and to ensure that a powerful country must have a bulletproof system to function normally," Yan said, "Chronic diseases are also called non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes.
, Heart failure and Alzheimer’s disease have catastrophic effects on many individuals, families and society as a whole, all caused by mitochondrial problems in cells
.
"
Pressure detector
Yan's team found special sensors on the outer mitochondrial membrane of different tissues in mice and humans
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These sensors detect "energy stress", such as caused by exercise or fasting, and signal that damaged mitochondria are degraded and removed
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This indispensable cleanup process is called "autophagy", and its existence was first proposed more than 100 years ago
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But its working principle has not been fully understood
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Yan's new research provides the long-sought answer
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Yan and his colleagues discovered that the mitochondrial sensor called "mitoAMPK" exists in slightly different forms in different tissues
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For example, one type seems to be particularly active in skeletal muscles
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In a scientific paper outlining their findings, the researchers described the diversity of sensors as "unexpectedly complex
.
" They went on to outline how these sensors provide a vital damage control system to protect our cellular energy supply
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One finding of this study made Yan very excited: Treating mice with the most effective first-line anti-diabetic drug metformin can activate the silk mitoAMPK in skeletal muscle, but not AMPK in other parts of the cell
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This finding best illustrates the importance of activation of mitoAMPK and mitochondrial quality control in the treatment of a common chronic disease, which is known to be caused by the accumulation of dysfunctional mitochondria in our body
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This also explains why regular exercise is so effective in preventing and treating such diseases
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The new understanding of mitochondrial quality control will promote efforts to develop new treatments for non-communicable diseases, which have reached epidemic levels and are estimated to cause 71% of all deaths
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Yan, a member of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Virginia, said that it will be important for doctors to better understand how certain diseases interfere with mitochondrial function
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His new discoveries laid the foundation for this research
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Yan said: "We have developed a genetic model to determine the key steps of mitoAMPK activation, and are discovering magical molecules controlled by mitoAMPK on our way
.
" "These discoveries have given us an understanding of the beauty of the body's sensor system
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The society is sure.
These findings should be used to promote regular exercise, to promote health and disease prevention, and to develop effective exercise drugs
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"
