Cristae-dependent quality control of the mitochondrial genome

Mitochondrial genomes (MtDNA) comprise essential subunits of the mitochondrial respiratory chain; therefore, mutations in mtDNA can reduce cellular energy support and cause mitochondrial diseases. Researchers seek to understand how cells can secure the integrity of mtDNA across generations. In a new study now published on Science Advances, Christopher Jakubke and an international research team in biology and biophysics, demonstrated how single-celled yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae could intracellularly distinguish between functional and defective mtDNA. The outcomes of the research can support a model that shows how the proximity between mtDNA and the proteins it encodes can create a sphere of influence to understand the functional mtDNA in cells.