Oocyte mitochondria link maternal environment to offspring phenotype.

During maturation oocytes undergo a recently discovered mitochondrial proteome remodeling event in flies, frogs, and humans. This oocyte mitochondrial remodeling, which includes substantial changes in electron transport chain (ETC) subunit abundance, is regulated by maternal insulin signaling. Why oocytes undergo mitochondrial remodeling is unknown, with some speculating that it might be an evolutionarily conserved mechanism to protect oocytes from genotoxic damage by reactive oxygen species (ROS).