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Mitocytosis, a migrasome-mediated mitochondrial quality-control process

Haifeng Jiao1, Dong Jiang1, Xiaoyu Hu1

  • 1State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Tsinghua University-Peking University Joint Centre for Life Sciences, Beijing Frontier Research Center for Biological Structure, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China.

Cell
|May 28, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Mitocytosis, a new mitochondrial quality control process, removes damaged mitochondria via migrasomes in migrating cells. This mechanism maintains mitochondrial health and cell viability, especially in neutrophils.

Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Mitochondrial Biology
  • Quality Control Mechanisms

Background:

  • Maintaining mitochondrial quality is crucial for cellular health.
  • Damaged mitochondria must be efficiently cleared to prevent cellular dysfunction.
  • Existing quality control pathways may not fully address mitochondrial clearance in migrating cells.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify and characterize a novel mitochondrial quality control process.
  • To elucidate the mechanism by which damaged mitochondria are removed from migrating cells.
  • To investigate the physiological relevance of this process in maintaining cellular function and viability.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized cell culture models under mild mitochondrial stress conditions.
  • Investigated the role of migrasomes in the transport and disposal of damaged mitochondria.
  • Analyzed mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and mitochondrial respiration.
  • Conducted in vivo studies using neutrophils to assess physiological relevance.

Main Results:

  • Identified 'mitocytosis' as a migrasome-mediated process for clearing damaged mitochondria.
  • Demonstrated that damaged mitochondria are transported into migrasomes and disposed of from migrating cells.
  • Showed that mitocytosis protects against loss of MMP and mitochondrial respiration under stress.
  • Found that blocking mitocytosis impairs MMP and respiration even under normal conditions.
  • Confirmed the necessity of mitocytosis for maintaining MMP and viability in neutrophils in vivo.

Conclusions:

  • Mitocytosis is a novel and essential mitochondrial quality control mechanism in migrating cells.
  • This process couples mitochondrial homeostasis with cell migration dynamics.
  • Mitocytosis is critical for maintaining cellular energy metabolism and overall cell viability.
Keywords:
migrasomemitochondrial quality controlmitochondrionmitocytosismitosome

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