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Updated: May 21, 2026

Isolation and Respiratory Measurements of Mitochondria from Arabidopsis thaliana
Published on: January 5, 2018
The role of mitochondria in leaf nitrogen metabolism
1Institute of Experimental Plant Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland. szal@biol.uw.edu.pl
Abstract:
For optimal plant growth and development, cellular nitrogen (N) metabolism must be closely coordinated with other metabolic pathways, and mitochondria are thought to play a central role in this process. Recent studies using genetically modified plants have provided insight into the role of mitochondria in N metabolism. Mitochondrial metabolism is linked with N assimilation by amino acid, carbon (C) and redox metabolism. Mitochondria are not only an important source of C skeletons for N incorporation, they also produce other necessary metabolites and energy used in N remobilization processes. Nitric oxide of mitochondrial origin regulates respiration and influences primary N metabolism. Here, we discuss the changes in mitochondrial metabolism during ammonium or nitrate nutrition and under low N conditions. We also describe the involvement of mitochondria in the redistribution of N during senescence. The aim of this review was to demonstrate the role of mitochondria as an integration point of N cellular metabolism.
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