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Increased transcription of mitochondrial genes for Complex I in human platelets during ageing
Milena Merlo Pich1, Nicola Raule, Lucia Catani
1Department of Biochemistry 'G. Moruzzi', University of Bologna, Via Irnerio 48, 40126 Bologna, Italy.
Abstract:
We studied the effect of ageing on the mRNA levels of mitochondria-encoded polypeptides in human platelets. We used quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) to investigate the expression of selected cytochrome c oxidase (COX) genes (subunits I and III) and Complex I genes (subunits reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) dehydrogenase (ND)1 and (ND)5 in platelets from young and aged healthy subjects. Northern blot analysis confirmed the PCR results. COX I expression is higher than that of COX III in both young and aged platelets. A significant increase of transcripts for Complex I was found during ageing. On the contrary, the mRNA levels of the two COX subunits did not significantly vary during ageing.
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