Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 8, 2026
08:11
Isolation of Mitochondria from Mouse Skeletal Muscle for Respirometric Assays
Published on: February 10, 2022
A Lack of Specificity for Ethylene-induced Mitochondrial Changes
1Department of Vegetable Crops, University of California, Riverside, California 92502.
Plant Physiology
|July 1, 1970
Summary
Ethylene
Area of Science:
- Plant biology
- Biochemistry
Background:
- Ethylene is a plant hormone regulating growth and stress responses.
- Its precise mechanism of action at the cellular level is debated.
- A key hypothesis involves altered cell organelle permeability.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically evaluate the hypothesis that ethylene alters cell organelle permeability.
- To investigate the effects of ethylene and other gases on mitochondrial function.
Main Methods:
- Mitochondria were isolated with good respiratory control.
- Mitochondrial oxidation and swelling were measured.
- The influence of various aliphatic gases, including ethylene, was assessed using spectrometric methods.
Main Results:
- Ethylene and other aliphatic gases (saturated and unsaturated) induced rapid mitochondrial swelling in 0.125 m KCl.
- These gases affected mitochondria similarly, irrespective of saturation.
Conclusions:
- The findings suggest ethylene does not primarily act by directly altering membrane permeability.
- The observed mitochondrial swelling is likely mediated by a mechanism common to various hydrocarbon gases.
