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ATG5-HSP90.2-mediated micromitophagy as a cytological basis for maternal inheritance of plant mitochondria

Xiaorong Huang1,2, Linlin Zhao3,4, Zonglin Liu3

  • 1State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China. huangxr@xmu.edu.cn.

Nature Plants
|January 21, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Plants eliminate paternal mitochondria using micromitophagy, a process where vacuoles engulf them in male germline cells. This mechanism, involving ATG5 and HSP90.2, ensures maternal mitochondrial inheritance and is conserved across angiosperms.

Area of Science:

  • Plant biology
  • Cell biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Mitochondria are typically maternally inherited in plants, a key aspect of non-Mendelian inheritance.
  • The precise mechanisms driving paternal mitochondrial elimination (PME) in plants are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms of paternal mitochondrial elimination (PME) in angiosperms.
  • To investigate the role of autophagy-related proteins in PME.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a vegetative-to-germline cell fate transition system in plants.
  • Investigated the translocation and interaction of ATG5 and HSP90.2.
  • Observed vacuolar engulfment of paternal mitochondria via tonoplast invagination.

Main Results:

  • Discovered that angiosperms employ micromitophagy-mediated PME, involving direct engulfment of paternal mitochondria by vacuoles in male germline (MG) cells.
  • Demonstrated that micromitophagy is triggered by male germline cell fate determination.
  • Showed that ATG5 translocates to vacuoles and interacts with mitochondrion-located HSP90.2 during this process, revealing cell-type-specific ATG neofunctionalization.

Conclusions:

  • Micromitophagy is the primary mechanism for PME in angiosperms, ensuring maternal mitochondrial inheritance.
  • This process is conserved and optimized throughout angiosperm evolution.
  • The findings provide crucial mechanistic insights into plant PME and support zygote-to-embryo transition.

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