Biomedical subjects

Thierry Letellier

Publications and source records attributed to Thierry Letellier.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2003

Effects of corticosterone on muscle mitochondria identifying different sensitivity to glucocorticoids in Lewis and Fischer rats.

Previous studies in rat have demonstrated decreased number of mitochondria and uncoupling of oxidative phosphorylation after administration of glucocorticoids but at supraphysiological doses and using synthetic glucocorticoids. To analyze the relationships between corticosterone levels (the natural glucocorticoid in rat) and muscle mitochondrial metabolism, Lewis and Fischer 344 rats were bilaterally adrenalectomized and implanted with different corticosterone pellets (0, 12, 50, 100, and 200 mg of corticosterone). Rats bearing a corticosterone pellet delivering corticosterone at concentrations in the range of chronic stress-induced levels presented a lower amount of functional muscle mitochondria with a decrease in cytochrome c oxidase and citrate synthase activities and a depletion of mitochondrial DNA. Moreover, a strain difference in tissue sensitivity to corticosterone was depicted both in end-organ sensitive to glucocorticoids (body, thymus, and adrenal weights) and in muscle mitochondrial metabolism (Lewis > Fischer). Interestingly, this strain difference was also observed in the absence of corticosterone, with a deleterious effect on muscle mitochondrial metabolism in Fischer rats, whereas no effects were observed in Lewis rats. We therefore postulate that corticosterone is necessary for muscle mitochondrial metabolism exerting its effects in Fischer rats with an inverted U curve, whereby too little (only Fischer) or too much (Fischer and Lewis) corticosterone is deleterious to muscle mitochondrial metabolism. In conclusion, we propose a general model of coordinate regulation of mitochondrial energetic metabolism by glucocorticoids.

Adrenalectomy↗

PubMed2003

Cryopreservation of mitochondria and mitochondrial function in cardiac and skeletal muscle fibers.

Long-term preservation of muscle mitochondria for consequent functional analysis is an important and still unresolved challenge in the clinical study of metabolic diseases and in the basic research of mitochondrial physiology. We here present a method for cryopreservation of mitochondria in various muscle types including human biopsies. Mitochondrial function was analyzed after freeze-thawing permeabilized muscle fibers using glycerol and dimethyl sulfoxide as cryoprotectant. Using optimal freeze-thawing conditions, high rates of adenosine 5(')-diphosphate-stimulated respiration and high respiratory control were observed, showing intactness of mitochondrial respiratory function after cryopreservation. Measurement of adenosine 5(')-triphosphate (ATP) formation showed normal rates of ATP synthesis and ATP/O ratios. Intactness of the outer mitochondrial membrane and functional coupling between mitochondrial creatine kinase and oxidative phosphorylation were verified by respiratory cytochrome c and creatine tests. Simultaneous confocal imaging of mitochondrial flavoproteins and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide revealed normal intracellular arrangement and metabolic responses of mitochondria after freeze-thawing. The method therefore permits, after freezing and long-term storage of muscle samples, mitochondrial function to be estimated and energy metabolism to be monitored in situ. This will significantly expand the scope for screening and exchange of human biopsy samples between research centers, thus providing a new basis for functional analysis of mitochondrial defects in various diseases.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed2003

Mitochondrial threshold effects.

The study of mitochondrial diseases has revealed dramatic variability in the phenotypic presentation of mitochondrial genetic defects. To attempt to understand this variability, different authors have studied energy metabolism in transmitochondrial cell lines carrying different proportions of various pathogenic mutations in their mitochondrial DNA. The same kinds of experiments have been performed on isolated mitochondria and on tissue biopsies taken from patients with mitochondrial diseases. The results have shown that, in most cases, phenotypic manifestation of the genetic defect occurs only when a threshold level is exceeded, and this phenomenon has been named the 'phenotypic threshold effect'. Subsequently, several authors showed that it was possible to inhibit considerably the activity of a respiratory chain complex, up to a critical value, without affecting the rate of mitochondrial respiration or ATP synthesis. This phenomenon was called the 'biochemical threshold effect'. More recently, quantitative analysis of the effects of various mutations in mitochondrial DNA on the rate of mitochondrial protein synthesis has revealed the existence of a 'translational threshold effect'. In this review these different mitochondrial threshold effects are discussed, along with their molecular bases and the roles that they play in the presentation of mitochondrial diseases.

Animals↗

PubMed2002

Base composition at mtDNA boundaries suggests a DNA triple helix model for human mitochondrial DNA large-scale rearrangements.

Different mechanisms have been proposed to account for mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) instability based on the presence of short homologous sequences (direct repeats, DR) at the potential boundaries of mtDNA rearrangements. Among them, slippage-mispairing of the replication complex during the asymmetric replication cycle of the mammalian mitochondrial DNA has been proposed to account for the preferential localization of deletions. This mechanism involves a transfer of the replication complex from the first neo-synthesized heavy (H) strand of the DR1, to the DR2, thus bypassing the intervening sequence and producing a deleted molecule. Nevertheless, the nature of the bonds between the DNA strands remains unknown as the forward sequence of DR2, beyond the replication complex, stays double-stranded. Here, we have analyzed the base composition of the DR at the boundaries of mtDNA deletions and duplications and found a skewed pyrimidine content of about 75% in the light-strand DNA template. This suggests the possible building of a DNA triple helix between the G-rich neo-synthesized DR1 and the base-paired homologous G.C-rich DR2. In vitro experiments with the purified human DNA polymerase gamma subunits enabled us to show that the third DNA strand may be used as a primer for DNA replication, using a template with the direct repeat forming a hairpin, with which the primer could initiate DNA replication. These data suggest a novel molecular basis for mitochondrial DNA rearrangements through the distributive nature of the DNA polymerase gamma, at the level of the direct repeats. A general model accounting for large-scale mitochondrial DNA deletion and duplication is proposed. These experiments extend to a DNA polymerase from an eucaryote source the use of a DNA triple helix strand as a primer, like other DNA polymerases from phage and bacterial origins.

Base Composition↗

PubMed2002

Virtual mitochondria: metabolic modelling and control.

Inside the eukaryotic cell, mitochondria are internal organelles of prokaryotic origin, responsible for energy supply in the cell. The control of the mitochondrial ATP production is a complex problem with different patterns according to different tissues and organs. Our aim is to continue to develop the modelling of oxidative phosphorylation in different tissues, to model other parts of mitochondrial metabolism and to include this virtual mitochondria in a virtual cell. In constructing the complete metabolic map of mitochondria, we will take advantage of the sequenced genomes of eukaryotic organism (10-15% of the yeast genome concerns mitochondria).

Animals↗