Visualization of Mitochondrial Membrane Dynamics in Primary Cultured Neurons by Cryo-electron Tomography

摘要

Dear Editor,Mitochondria acts as a cellular organelle that produces ATP and buffers Ca2+,and plays an important role in neuronal growth,survival and function[1].Loss of mitochondria will make the ATP supply insufficient,resulting in synaptic transmission dysfunction[2].Further,presynaptic mitochondrial dysfunctions are often associated with severe neurological diseases[3].Abnormal mitochondrial function can also lead to neurodegenerative diseases because of the degeneration of synapse transmission,such as Alzheimer’s disease[4]and Parkinson’s disease[5].In neurons,mitochondria have a wide range of size,shape and number,which can be constantly changed through fission and fusion events to form a highly dynamic and organized network[6]and also a way of mitochondrial quality control.