ABSTRACT
As we have learned more about mitochondria over the past decades, including about their essential cellular roles and how altered mitochondrial biology results in disease, it has become apparent that they are not just powerplants pumping out ATP at the whim of the cell. Rather, mitochondria are dynamic information and energy processors that play crucial roles in directing dozens of cellular processes and behaviors. They provide instructions to enact programs that regulate various cellular operations, such as complex metabolic networks, signaling and innate immunity, and even control cell fate, dictating when cells should divide, differentiate or die. To help current and future generations of cell biologists incorporate the dynamic, multifaceted nature of mitochondria and assimilate modern discoveries into their scientific framework, mitochondria need a 21st century ‘rebranding’. In this Opinion article, we argue that mitochondria should be considered as the ‘Chief Executive Organelle’ – the CEO – of the cell.
Footnotes
Funding
Our work in this area was supported by grants from the Calgary Parkinson Research Initiative through the Hotchkiss Brain Institute (T.E.S.) and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (T.E.S.). L.P.L-G. was supported by a Cumming School of Medicine Graduate Scholarship. M.P. gratefully acknowledges support from National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants R01MH122706, RF1AG076821, R01AG066828, R01AG086764, R01MH137190, R01MH137190 and the Baszucki Group. Deposited in PMC for release after 12 months.
Special Issue
This article is part of the Special Issue ‘Cell Biology of Mitochondria’, guest edited by Ana J. Garcia-Saez and Heidi McBride. See related articles at https://journals.biologists.com/jcs/issue/138/9.
