Big change from small player: Mitochondria alter body metabolism and gene expression
Sunday, November 11, 2018 - 21:10
in Biology & Nature
Mitochondria have their own DNA, but the 13 genes in human mitochondria -- along with DNA sequences for tRNAs, rRNAs and some small peptides -- are massively overshadowed by the 20,000 genes in the human nucleus. Nevertheless, these diminutive mitochondria may have a strong influence on cellular metabolism and susceptibility to metabolic diseases like heart failure or obesity.