Cells´ power producers govern health and ageing

How do mitochondria work, and what happens if they don´t work properly? These are questions that occupy researchers at the Mitochondrial Medicine Center. The Center brings together researchers and clinicians at Karolinska Institutet and Karolinska University Hospital in Huddinge.

Mitochondria, the power producers of all cells, play a crucial part in our existence. They convert inhaled oxygen and the nutrients in our food into the energy required by the body´s cells. When a defect arises in these tiny cell organs, the consequences may be serious.Mitochondrial defects can cause several rare genetic disorders. But they can also give rise to common health problems, such as heart failure, type 2 diabetes and Parkinson´s disease. Ageing, too, may be affected if the mitochondria no longer function properly.

‘ Our research shows that mice age faster if their mitochondria are given genetic defects,´ says Professor Nils-Göran Larsson. ‘The mice with modified genes show more signs of age than are seen in normal ageing — hair loss, brittle bones and reduced fertility, for instance. The animals´ lifespan is also shortened.´

Closer collaboration
The Swedish Research Council´s initiative for strong research environments was a basic precondition for forming a centre for mitochondrial research. The newly formed centre comprises four teams, who are to share premises at Novum Research Park in Huddinge.‘If the research is set up around several equally strong, independent partners, it makes for a more dynamic environment. Then it doesn´t stand or fall with one person.´

To enhance team togetherness, there will be joint seminars and annual meetings to discuss research issues.‘We want people who work at the Center to feel they´re part of a larger context.´The Centre for Inherited Metabolic Diseases at Karolinska University Hospital in Huddinge will also be a key part of the Mitochondrial Medicine Center.‘Our aim is to integrate basic research with clinical research and drug development. Biological issues have to be tackled in an interdisciplinary way, using several different methods,´ Nils-Göran Larsson maintains.

Peter Tillhammar

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