Cairns George, Thumiah-Mootoo Madhavee, Burelle Yan, Khacho Mireille
Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1N 7K4, Canada.
Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada.
Biology (Basel). 2020 Dec 19;9(12):481. doi: 10.3390/biology9120481.
The fundamental importance of functional mitochondria in the survival of most eukaryotic cells, through regulation of bioenergetics, cell death, calcium dynamics and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, is undisputed. However, with new avenues of research in stem cell biology these organelles have now emerged as signaling entities, actively involved in many aspects of stem cell functions, including self-renewal, commitment and differentiation. With this recent knowledge, it becomes evident that regulatory pathways that would ensure the maintenance of mitochondria with state-specific characteristics and the selective removal of organelles with sub-optimal functions must play a pivotal role in stem cells. As such, mitophagy, as an essential mitochondrial quality control mechanism, is beginning to gain appreciation within the stem cell field. Here we review and discuss recent advances in our knowledge pertaining to the roles of mitophagy in stem cell functions and the potential contributions of this specific quality control process on to the progression of aging and diseases.
功能性线粒体通过调节生物能量学、细胞死亡、钙动力学和活性氧（ROS）生成，对大多数真核细胞的存活具有根本重要性，这一点毋庸置疑。然而，随着干细胞生物学研究的新途径出现，这些细胞器现在已成为信号传导实体，积极参与干细胞功能的许多方面，包括自我更新、定向分化和分化。基于这一最新认识，确保维持具有特定状态特征的线粒体以及选择性去除功能次优的细胞器的调节途径，在干细胞中必定起着关键作用。因此，线粒体自噬作为一种重要的线粒体质量控制机制，开始在干细胞领域受到重视。在此，我们回顾并讨论了我们在有关线粒体自噬在干细胞功能中的作用以及这一特定质量控制过程对衰老和疾病进展的潜在贡献方面的最新知识进展。
