Scholarship 24/18360-8 - Metabolismo, Mitocôndrias - BV FAPESP
Advanced search
Start date
Betweenand

Skeletal muscle function in mice with muscle-specific deletion of mitofusin 1

Grant number: 24/18360-8
Support Opportunities:Scholarships in Brazil - Program to Stimulate Scientific Vocations
Start date until: February 03, 2025
End date until: March 22, 2025
Field of knowledge:Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
Principal Investigator:Julio Cesar Batista Ferreira
Grantee:Francisco Douglas Oliveira Matias
Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Mitochondria are organelles that continually undergo fusion and fission. These opposing processes work together to maintain the shape, size, and number of mitochondria. Recently, our group demonstrated that reestablishing mitochondrial fusion-fission balance through physical exercise or pharmacological therapy is sufficient to recover mitochondrial bioenergetic metabolism and improve the prognosis of heart failure in rodents. This process occurs via reestablishment of the catalytic activity of mitofusin 1 (Mfn1, GTPase important in mitochondrial fusion) in cardiac tissue. Considering that skeletal muscle has a high metabolic demand and a large number of mitochondria, and that muscle diseases are often accompanied by mitochondrial dysfunction, we decided to investigate the role of mitochondrial plasticity (the ability to reorganize their morphology and number under stress) in skeletal muscle. Our preliminary results using C. elegans show that mitochondrial plasticity is important in skeletal muscle and directly depends on Mfn1. Mfn1-deficient C. elegans exhibit impaired mitochondrial bioenergetics and intolerance to physical stress. In this sense, we propose here to characterize the contractile function and skeletal muscle metabolism in transgenic mice with muscle-specific deletion of mitofusin 1. A better understanding of this process may contribute to the development and use of new pharmacological and non-pharmacological strategies capable of combat muscle dysfunction and degeneration.

News published in Agência FAPESP Newsletter about the scholarship:
More itemsLess items
Articles published in other media outlets ( ):
More itemsLess items
VEICULO: TITULO (DATA)
VEICULO: TITULO (DATA)

Please report errors in scientific publications list using this form.