Developed a highly efficient method for mitochondrial transplantation

Mitochondria, which is the organelle that produces energy in the cell, plays a central role in cellular function, and therefore, the inability of mitochondria to function brings along many problems. A new method has been developed that enables the ability to transplant mitochondria from one living cell to another with unprecedented efficiency.

Cell-to-cell transfer of mitochondria

Researchers at the Federal Institute of Technology Zurich say they have taken the first step towards a way to rejuvenate tissues affected by mitochondrial dysfunction. The research team developed a new method of mitochondrial transplantation by injecting healthy mitochondria into damaged tissues with the help of nanosyringes.

Using a cylindrical nanosyringe specially developed for this study, the team pierced the membrane of healthy cells and absorbed spherical mitochondria, then pierced the membrane of a different cell and pumped the mitochondria back from the nanosyringe to the recipient cell.

The position of the nanosyringe was controlled by laser light from a converted atomic force microscope, while a pressure regulator allowed the delivery of liquid in volumes in the millionth of a milliliter.

It was observed in laboratory tests that transplanted mitochondria had a survival rate of 80%. It is stated that about 20 minutes after transplantation, the new cell begins to fuse with its filamentous network.

Researchers developed While the new method could be used to rejuvenate stem cells that decline in metabolic activity as they age, they currently plan to use the technique to study how mitochondria arose through an evolutionary process called endosymbiosis.