Mitochondria in neurodegeneration: Investigating the role of mitochondria and metabolism in the cause and therapeutic targeting of neurodegenerative diseases

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The survival of our most active tissues, such as the brain and heart, throughout decades of a human lifespan presents an extraordinary biological challenge. The cellular organelles known as mitochondria are central to the life and death of these tissues. While providing the high amount of energy required by these cells and buffering cytoplasmic calcium flux, they also produce many of the molecules that cause cellular damage and house an array of cell death-inducing factors. Thus, these organelles require extensive maintenance and quality control processes. Failure in mitochondrial homeostasis is strongly linked to age-related conditions such as neurodegeneration.Our group aims to understand the mechanisms of mitochondrial homeostasis in relation to neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease and motor neuron disease. We use a combination of the powerful genetic techniques of Drosophila (fruit flies) and molecular, cell biology and biochemical approaches in mammalian cells. Insights into these mechanisms will deliver a greater understanding of the role of mitochondrial maintenance in the health and dysfunction of the nervous system in a physiological context and will help guide therapeutic development to combat neurodegenerative diseases.