Zorzano Antonio, Hernández-Alvarez María Isabel, Sebastián David, Muñoz Juan Pablo
1 Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB Barcelona) , Barcelona, Spain .
Antioxid Redox Signal. 2015 Apr 20;22(12):1020-31. doi: 10.1089/ars.2014.6208. Epub 2015 Mar 18.
Mitochondrial dynamics is a complex process that impacts on mitochondrial biology.
Recent evidence indicates that proteins participating in mitochondrial dynamics have additional cellular roles. Mitofusin 2 (Mfn2) is a potent modulator of mitochondrial metabolism with an impact on energy metabolism in muscle, liver, and hypothalamic neurons. In addition, Mfn2 is subjected to tight regulation. Hence, factors such as proinflammatory cytokines, lipid availability, or glucocorticoids block its expression, whereas exercise and increased energy expenditure promote its upregulation.
Importantly, Mfn2 controls cell metabolism and insulin signaling by limiting reactive oxygen species production and by modulation of endoplasmic reticulum stress. In this connection, it is critical to understand precisely the molecular mechanisms involved in the global actions of Mfn2.
Future directions should concentrate into the analysis of those mechanisms, and to fully demonstrate that Mfn2 represents a cellular hub that senses the metabolic and hormonal milieu and drives the control of metabolic homeostasis.
线粒体动力学是一个影响线粒体生物学的复杂过程。
最近的证据表明，参与线粒体动力学的蛋白质具有额外的细胞功能。线粒体融合蛋白2（Mfn2）是线粒体代谢的有效调节剂，对肌肉、肝脏和下丘脑神经元的能量代谢有影响。此外，Mfn2受到严格调控。因此，促炎细胞因子、脂质可用性或糖皮质激素等因素会阻断其表达，而运动和能量消耗增加则会促进其上调。
重要的是，Mfn2通过限制活性氧的产生和调节内质网应激来控制细胞代谢和胰岛素信号传导。在这方面，准确理解Mfn2整体作用所涉及的分子机制至关重要。
未来的研究方向应集中于对这些机制的分析，并充分证明Mfn2是一个感知代谢和激素环境并驱动代谢稳态控制的细胞枢纽。
