OPA1 functionally interacts with MIC60 but is dispensable for crista junction formation.

Remodeling of crista junctions (CJs) is observed in numerous human disorders and during apoptosis. The functional interplay of OPA1 and MIC60, two key players in this context, is unclear. We show that OPA1 modulates cristae morphology but is dispensable for CJ formation.

Inner membrane dynamics in mitochondria.

Combining the use of cells with sparse cristae marked with IMP-EGFP and short pulsed sub-saturating fluorescence excitation (non-saturation fluorescence microscopy/NSFM) revealed inhomogeneous fluorescence distribution along mitochondria in living cells. Also the matrix located TMRE was distributed non-uniformly and at least in part filling the gaps between the IMP-EGFP fluorescence: fluorescence intensities are modulated in space and time in part in an antidromic manner. The spatial modulations can be interpreted to represent cristae/matrix distributions.

Emergence of the mitochondrial reticulum from fission and fusion dynamics.

Mitochondria form a dynamic tubular reticulum within eukaryotic cells. Currently, quantitative understanding of its morphological characteristics is largely absent, despite major progress in deciphering the molecular fission and fusion machineries shaping its structure. Here we address the principles of formation and the large-scale organization of the cell-wide network of mitochondria.

How to split up: lessons from mitochondria.

EMBO J 30 14, 2762–2778 (2011); published online June 24 2011 EMBO Rep 12 6, 565–573 (2011); doi:; DOI: 10.1038/embor.2011.

Determination of protein mobility in mitochondrial membranes of living cells.

Molecular mobility in membranes of intracellular organelles is poorly understood, due to the lack of experimental tools applicable for a great diversity of shapes and sizes such organelles can acquire. Determinations of diffusion within the plasma membrane or cytosol are based mostly on the assumption of an infinite flat space, not valid for curved membranes of smaller organelles. Here we extend the application of FRAP to mitochondria of living cells by application of numerical analysis to data collected from a small region inside a single organelle.

Do UCP2 and mild uncoupling improve longevity?

Mild uncoupling of mitochondrial respiration is considered to prolong life span of organisms by reducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Experimental evidence against this hypothesis has been brought forward by premature senescence in cell cultures treated with uncouplers. Exposing HUVEC to a mixture of nutritionally important fatty acids (oil extract of chicken yolk) mild uncoupling with "naturally acting substances" was performed.