Grant: Project Grant

Mitochondria are critical cell components best known for their role in generating the energy required for life. Beyond making energy, mitochondria are involved in a variety of other important cellular functions. Mitochondria are dynamic and need to interact with the rest of the cell to carry out their various functions. MFN2 is an important protein that mediates several of these dynamic mitochondrial interactions. Yet how MFN2 performs these distinct functions remains unknown. Although we know that genetic mutations in MFN2 cause a variety of diseases, we do not understand how MFN2 dysfunction leads to these different diseases. We will use human cells and a fly model to study the cellular functions of MFN2 by taking advantage of genetic MFN2 variants that cause different diseases. Understanding how MFN2 functions in cells and how MFN2 dysfunction leads to disease will improve our basic understanding of mitochondria and the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in disease.