MITOCHONDRIA OF PROTOZOA

Mitochondria of Protozoa

A study of thin sections of Paramecium multimicronucleatum, Tetrahymena pyriformis, Tokophrya infusionum, and Amoeba proteus shows that the mitochondria in all these protozoa are similar in certain aspects of their fine structure to that described in metazoan cells. As in higher organisms the mitochondrion is surrounded by a double limiting membrane and contains protrusions directed inward from...

Primitive anaerobic protozoa: the wrong host for mitochondria and hydrogenosomes?

Sense from nonsense: RNA editing in mitochondria of kinetoplastid protozoa and slime molds

The reworking of the sequences of mitochondrial DNA transcripts is an intriguing genetic phenomenon that continues to create amazement even today, 9 years after the discovery of uridine (U) insertion/deletion editing in trypanosomatid mitochondria. Upon initial exposure to this phenomenon, the usual scientific questions of what and how were rapidly followed by the more philosophical question of...

Are tRNAs imported into the mitochondria of kinetoplastid protozoa as 5'-extended precursors?

All mitochondrial tRNAs in kinetoplastid protozoa are encoded in nuclear DNA and transported into the mitochondrion (Simpson et al., Nucl Acids Res 1989;17:5427-5445; Hancock and Hajduk, J Biol Chem 1990;265:19208-19215). It has been proposed that tRNAs in these cells are imported into the mitochondrion as 5'-extended precursors which are processed by a mitochondrial RNase P-like activity (Hanc...

Toxicity of atorvastatin on isolated brain mitochondria

Background: Although the bio kinetics, metabolism and chemical toxicity of Atorvastatin are well known, until recently little attention was paid to the potential neurotoxic effect of Atorvastatin (Atv). Regarding the concrete evidences indicating Atv may reduce Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) levels through blockage of  metalonate cycle, the present work aims to determine if Atorvastatin may provide toxic...