PGC1s and Beyond: Disentangling the Complex Regulation of Mitochondrial and Cellular Metabolism
Year: 2021
Type: article
Abstract: Metabolism is the central engine of living organisms as it provides energy and building blocks for many essential components of each cell, which are required for specific functions in different tissues. Mitochondria are the main site for energy production in living organisms and they also provide intermediate metabolites required for the synthesis of other biologically relevant molecules. Such cellular processes are finely tuned at different levels, including allosteric regulation, posttranslational modifications, and transcription of genes encoding key proteins in metabolic pathways. Peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ coactivator 1 (PGC1) proteins are transcriptional coactivators involved in the regulation of many cellular processes, mostly ascribable to metabolic pathways. Here, we will discuss some aspects of the cellular processes regulated by PGC1s, bringing up some examples of their role in mitochondrial and cellular metabolism, and how metabolic regulation in mitochondria by members of the PGC1 family affects the immune system. We will analyze how PGC1 proteins are regulated at the transcriptional and posttranslational level and will also examine other regulators of mitochondrial metabolism and the related cellular functions, considering approaches to identify novel mitochondrial regulators and their role in physiology and disease. Finally, we will analyze possible therapeutical perspectives currently under assessment that are applicable to different disease states.
DOI: 10.3390/ijms22136913
Institution: University of Milan
Language: English
Subfield: Physiology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $1,554
Funders: Giovanni Armenise-Harvard Foundation, Università degli Studi di Milano, European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes, Fondazione Cariplo, Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Università e della Ricerca, Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, Ministero dell'Università e della Ricerca, FP7 People: Marie-Curie Actions, FP7 Health
OpenAlex ID: W3176446984