Mitochondria News and Research

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Researchers identify a central controller of mitochondrial dynamics in disease

A key switch for cellular energy balance has been discovered in cells: it could potentially become the target of new therapies for diseases ranging from Parkinson's to rare disorders caused by defects in the cell's powerhouses, the mitochondria.

6 Oct 2025

Exploring exercise's physiological response to fight diabetes

Don't love the gym? Neither does exercise scientist Ryan Montalvo. But he goes anyway. While any workout can seem daunting, the physical stress of exercise often affords long-term benefits. One advantage is that it triggers a physiological response that allows our cells to adjust to meet future energy demand in what's known as a hormetic response.

3 Oct 2025

Stem cells and organoids offer a new understanding of APOL1 kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects more than 700 million people worldwide and is caused by genetic and environmental factors, as well as existing medical conditions. Known genetic risk factors for CKD include mutations in a gene called APOL1.

3 Oct 2025

Second round of exercise boosts muscle growth in mice

New research offers potential good news for those who've lapsed at the gym. The study found that mice that voluntarily ran on an exercise wheel for four weeks, stopped for four weeks and ran again for another four weeks saw unexpected gains.

2 Oct 2025

Antidepressant fluoxetine alters brain energy use and boosts neural plasticity

A new study shows that the widely used antidepressant fluoxetine does more than boost serotonin levels: it changes how brain cells manage their energy and rebuild their connections, potentially helping the brain "loosen up" and adapt during depression treatment.

25 Sep 2025

Organophosphate pesticide exposure linked to reduced sperm quality in healthy men

This pilot study found that urinary metabolites of organophosphate pesticides were linked to reduced sperm motility in healthy young men, though results were preliminary. Oxidative stress did not explain the association, suggesting other biological pathways may be involved.

25 Sep 2025

Eating earlier in the day could help you lose more weight than later meals

Time-restricted eating impacts body composition and performance, with early eating linked to greater weight loss and late eating enhancing anaerobic power.

25 Sep 2025

How food choices and cooking methods drive brain inflammation and disease

Researchers reviewing evidence in NeuroSci show how dietary AGEs and their interaction with RAGE drive oxidative stress, inflammation, and neurodegeneration. They highlight how cooking methods and diet choices could lower AGE burden and protect brain health, while calling for rigorous clinical trials.

24 Sep 2025

Scientists unveil new obesity drug that reprograms fat and energy use

Details of a new drug that aims to treat the underlying causes of obesity are being presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Vienna, Austria (15-19 September).

18 Sep 2025

Peroxisomes identified as alternative heat producers in brown fat

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a novel way brown fat - an energy-burning form of fat - can rev the body's metabolic engine, consuming cellular fuel and producing heat in a way that improves metabolic health.

17 Sep 2025

CoQ10 shows promise in boosting female fertility by reviving aging eggs

Researchers reviewed evidence on Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and found it may enhance mitochondrial function, improve oocyte quality, and counteract age-related fertility decline. The review highlights promising results from clinical, preclinical, and in vitro studies but calls for larger trials to confirm safety, dosing, and effectiveness.

16 Sep 2025

Ketogenic diets may lower migraine frequency and medication use

This narrative review argues that the migraine brain is hypometabolic, with converging evidence of mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired glucose handling, neuroinflammation, microbiome shifts, and obesity-related pathways. It proposes ketogenic diets as a plausible preventive strategy that may reduce monthly migraine days and medication use, while emphasizing the need for larger, rigorous randomized trials and careful clinical oversight.

14 Sep 2025

Female-specific mechanism enhances heat production in brown fat

Higher activity of PGC-1α enables brown fat cells in females to thermogenic activity and energy expenditure compared to males, reveals a study conducted in Japan.

12 Sep 2025

Breakthrough findings point to future treatments for juvenile dermatomyositis

Children with a rare, debilitating muscle disease could benefit from the findings of new research by experts at UCL and Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH).

11 Sep 2025

Targeting telomere damage offers new path to boost cancer immunotherapy

Tumors are stressful places for cancer-fighting immune cells. Low oxygen, high acid levels, and other stressors put strain on mitochondria, the cell's energy factories, leading to T cell exhaustion and poor cancer outcomes.

10 Sep 2025

New method reveals how mitochondrial DNA mutations influence cancer growth

Mitochondria act as energy factories in cells and have their own, separate DNA. Mutations to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) have been observed in cancer, but it has been unclear how these changes might affect cancer growth.

10 Sep 2025

Rare ABCA7 gene variants linked to Alzheimer’s risk

A new study from MIT neuroscientists reveals how rare variants of a gene called ABCA7 may contribute to the development of Alzheimer's in some of the people who carry it.

10 Sep 2025

Researchers reveal why no level of air pollution is safe for respiratory health

A review in the Journal of Clinical Investigation shows how particulate matter damages the lungs through oxidative stress, inflammation, and immune disruption. It links air pollution to asthma, COPD, lung cancer, infections, and millions of premature deaths, with no safe exposure threshold.

9 Sep 2025

Scientists identify key protein driving severe flu in older people

Scientists have discovered why older people are more likely to suffer severely from the flu, and can now use their findings to address this risk.

8 Sep 2025

New drug candidate STF 1623 activates innate immunity in solid tumors

Cancer immunotherapy, which primes the body's immune system to fight off tumors, has historically focused on harnessing T cells' natural ability to recognize and attack cancer cells.

5 Sep 2025