Essay, Research Paper
Mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell. Their sole responsibility is to provide energy for the cell. They do this by synthesizing a molecule known as ATP, which the cell uses as energy. Mitochondria are different from the rest of the cell organelles because they contain their own DNA outside the nucleus.
Mutations in this DNA have been found to be linked to Alzheimer s and other neurodegenerative diseases. Mutations in the DNA cause the mitochondria to function in other ways than it usually does. Generally these mutations cause the mitochondria to produce ATP less efficiently. Nuclear DNA is a lot less prone to these mutations because it has things that check and fix problems when they occur.
Mutations are passed from cell to cell randomly. When a cell divides it can pass both normal mitochondria and mutated ones in any ratio to the two daughter cells. These mutations can only be inherited through your mother since she is the one that provides all the mitochondria at conception.
In the process of making ATP oxygen free radicals are produced. These free radicals are very harmful and destructive causing breakdowns in mitochondria and more mutations in its DNA. The mutations are believed to produce free oxygen radicals. Mitochondria after long periods of time are able to produce less and less amounts ATP because of the free radicals deteriorating them. This for most of the cells is usually not that much of a problem because cells make excess ATP. But in mutated cells that are big ATP consumers, like brain and muscle cells, these cells can sometimes lack enough ATP to function and die because of it.
Work was done at the University of California, San Francisco to prove that oxygen radicals breakdown mitochondria. They used mice that lacked an enzyme (Manganese superoxide dismutase) that neutralizes free radicals during oxygen metabolism. The mice died within 10 days and samples taken of mitochondria from the heart tissue of the mice revealed the mice died because of problems with the mitochondria.
The death of brain cells is what is leading scientists to believe is one of the causes of Alzheimer s disease along with other neurodegenerative diseases. Scientist took brain tissue samples of people who died with the disease and found that over five percent of them had genetically mutated mitochondria DNA, this percentage would have been under one percent if it had been taken from people randomly without the disease.
As people grow older they usually feel like they have less and less energy to do things. This feeling of tiredness in older people can be attributed the less and less amounts of ATP being able to be produced by the mitochondria. Heart Attacks that people attribute to old age can sometimes be caused by the muscle cell in the heart not having enough energy to function correctly.
Diabetes Mellitus is another mitochondria related disease. Type II, mature onset diabetes is rooted in inherited mitochondria DNA defects still to be discovered. Research has already discovered that known mitochondria DNA rearrangement and base substitution mutations can at times cause Type II diabetes.
In conclusion, mitochondria research can hold the clues for curing some of the most devastating old age diseases.
Resources:
1) Finkel, Elizabeth. Piecing together the puzzle of aging , The Lancet, Oct 18, 1997 v350 n9085 p1150.
2) Travis, John. Do brain cells run out of gas? , Science News, August 5, 1995 v148 n6 p84.
3) Stepenson, Joan. A role for mitochondria in age-related disorders? , JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association, May 22,1996 v275 n20 p1531(2).
4) Fackelmann, Kathleen. Power failure: what happens when muscle cells run out of fuel , Science News, Sep 27, 1997 v152 n13 p206(2).
Другие работы по теме:
Progeria Essay Research Paper I
Progeria Essay, Research Paper I. Introduction A. Imagine for a second that you are a six-year-old. Your friends invite you out to play but you can t because you have a painful case of arthritis that hurts with every step you take. Or your chronic heart disease enables you from being able to breathe easily. These conditions are just a few that a child with Progeria may suffer from.
Aging Essay Research Paper During a story
Aging Essay, Research Paper During a story, an author sometimes chooses to include his opinions on certain important issues, such as aging. This applies to Samuel Beckett?s short story, Krapp?s Last Tape. In this story an old man named Mr. Krapp, relives his life through a sort of audio journal that he has kept through the years.
Biology Test Cells Essay Research Paper My
Biology Test: Cells Essay, Research Paper My brother was studying for his biology test. The next morning he was telling me about the dream he had. He said he traveled through a cell. I started to call him insane. My brother have an educational dream? I thought to myself, impossible.
Melatonin And The Pineal Gland Essay Research
Paper Set deep in our brains is a tiny gland called the pineal gland. This tiny gland is in charge of the endocrine system, the glandular system that controls most of our bodily functions. The pineal runs our body clocks+, and it produces melatonin; the hormone that may prove to be the biggest medical discovery since penicilin, and the key to controlling the aging process.
TaySach Disease Essay Research Paper TaySach Disease
Tay-Sach Disease Essay, Research Paper Tay-Sach Disease A Tragic Genetic Disease Christine Woods-Sosso What is Tay-Sachs disease? Tay-Sach disease is a tragic inheritied birth defect, that eventually kills the person with it. The symptoms appear around the age of 6 months in what seems to be a healthy baby.
Origins Of Mitochondria And Chloroplast Essay Research
Paper Origins of mitochondria and chloroplast Both mitochondria and chloroplast have an inner and outer membrane, each a phospholipid bilayer with a unique collection of embedded proteins. The inner membrane of the mitochondria is convoluted, with infoldings called cristae which gives it a greater surface are to enhance productivity of cellular respiration, it also encloses the mitochondrial matrix, and contains built in enzymes that make ATP.
Mitochondria Essay Research Paper Mitochondria
Mitochondria Essay, Research Paper Mitochondria Mitochondria are responsible for energy production. They are also the responsible location for which respiration takes place. Mitochondria contain
Mitochondria Essay Research Paper Mitochondria are the
Mitochondria Essay, Research Paper Mitochondria are the cells power sources of the cell. They are distinct organelles with two membranes. Usually they are rod-shaped, however they can be round. The mitochondria are organelles enclosed in a double membrane of phosphoglycerides. Between the two membranes of the mitochondrion lies a region known as the intermediate space.
AntiCloning Essay Research Paper Many people have
Anti-Cloning Essay, Research Paper Many people have different views about cloning. Some believe it to be a good thing. I think cloning is one of the worst things to come into the millennium. Cloning is very dangerous to humans. Not only could it kill a human being, but it could effect a family or others around them.
Mitochondria 2 Essay Research Paper MitochondriaMitochondria are
Mitochondria 2 Essay, Research Paper Mitochondria Mitochondria are tiny organelles found in nearly all eukaryotic cells. They are rather large organelles ranging from 0.5+m to 10+m in length and 1+m in diameter. The mitochondria are the energy factories of the cell and are located in the cytoplasm. They are the sites of cellular respiration.
The Plague Essay Research Paper Small pox
The Plague Essay, Research Paper Small pox. Tuberculosis. AIDS. These diseases have been considered epidemics at various points throughout the history of the world. None of them, however, had such an impact on the population and culture of the people than did the Black Death. The Black Death was a disease that invaded England in the middle of the fourteenth century.
The Small Pox Essay Research Paper In
The Small Pox Essay, Research Paper In May 1796, Dr. Edward Jenner a physician started investigating what was called cowpox which was a disease contracted by milking cows. This disease caused discomfort and lesions. This discovery and experiment with the cowpox disease seemed to produce an immunization to smallpox a very deadly disease.
Alzheimers Essay Research Paper Alzheimer
Alzheimers Essay, Research Paper Alzheimer’s Disease Alzheimer’s Disease is a progressive and irreversible brain disease that destroys mental and physical functioning
Stereotypes Of Elderly Essay Research Paper The
Stereotypes Of Elderly Essay, Research Paper The baby boomers cohort is soon approaching the last third of their lives while they try to disentangle the many stereotypes the elderly encounters today. The
Sickle Cell Anemia Essay Research Paper Sickle
Sickle Cell Anemia Essay, Research Paper Sickle Cell Anemia Sickle Cell Anemia is a genetic disease that affects all kinds of people and can start before a person is even born. This paper will talk about
The Trouble With Lichen
– A Society’s Reaction Essay, Research Paper The Trouble With Lichen- A Society’s Reaction John Wyndham’s novel The Trouble With Lichen is a science fiction story that
George Washington Essay Research Paper The genetic
George Washington Essay, Research Paper The genetic disorder I was told to research was the Sickle Cell Disease. I will explain what mutation causes this disease, the characteristics of it, and what has developed in the area of gene therapy because of it. The Sickle Cell Disease is an inherited disease. The gene for hemogoblin-S (which causes the disease) is the most common inherited blood condition in America; although most people only inherit one copy of the gene for HbS, while the other gene, hemogoblin-A, is normal, and can override HbS, blocking the disease.
Geographic Features Of A Region Has Important
Effects On Development Essay, Research Paper Geographic Features of A Region Has Important Effects on Development The geographic features of a nation or region have an important effect
Poem My Journey Essay Research Paper My
Poem: My Journey Essay, Research Paper My Journey My journey through Nature’s community, A community of green Aging giants of nature. Standing in brown dead needles,
Cells Essay Research Paper Essay of Eukaryotic
Cells Essay, Research Paper Essay of Eukaryotic Organelles The mitochondria has an egg shape structure. The mitochondria consists of an inner and outer membrane. The outer membrane is what shapes the organelle to its egg like shape. The inner membrane which folds inward makes a set of “shelves” or cristae that allow the reactions of the mitochondria to take place.
Life Expectancy Essay Research Paper Life expectancy
Life Expectancy Essay, Research Paper Life expectancy today has expanded in historically unprecedented proportions, greatly increasing the numbers of people who survive over the age of sixty-five. The instances of medical problems associated with aging, such as certain kinds of cancer and heart disease, have increase, giving rise to great consideration, both in research and in programs, for accommodating this increase.
Werner Syndrome Essay Research Paper Psychology 261Instructor
Werner Syndrome Essay, Research Paper Psychology 261 Instructor: Ms Anne Thomas, M.A. October 5, 2000 Page 1 Imagine in your early adolescents being diagnosed with a disease that increases your aging. Doctors tell you that there is no known cure and that you will die by the age of fifty. There is a disease that increases your aging, that disease is known as Werner Syndrome.
Dollys Mixture Essay Research Paper CLONING SPECIAL
Dollys Mixture Essay, Research Paper CLONING SPECIAL REPORT + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + Dolly’s mixture Clones are not the perfect replicas we thought.By Philip Cohen Dolly the sheep does not have precisely the same genetic make-up as the adult sheep from which she was cloned. A study shows that the genes in her mitochondria–the powerhouses of cells–came from another sheep involved in the experiment.
Jourrnal Essay Research Paper Journal AbstractPeople effect
Jourrnal Essay, Research Paper Journal Abstract People effect others without even knowing it when they choose to smoke. When someone lights up a cigarette and others inhale secondary smoke, you directly effect their health. Most smokers deny the fact that they are damaging others, or often don t even realize what they are doing.
Human Growth Hormone Essay Research Paper Human
Human Growth Hormone Essay, Research Paper Human Growth Hormone Human Growth Hormone is a chemical formula that prevents biological aging. To most people, the only thing known to do the same as HGH is “the fountain of youth”. HGH is one of many endocrine hormones found in the human anotomy, like estrogen, progestorene, testosterone, melatonin and DHEA, which decline in production with age.
Social Security
–Drawbacks Of Privitization Essay, Research Paper Federal emplyoment retirement fund Based on way budget defined… way to get 50% annual benefits for aging, because of including paying insurance into
Health Essay Research Paper Health
Health Essay, Research Paper Health Often we take our health, or the absence of illness, disease, or injury for granted until we become sick. It is then that we recognize the worth of
Heart Disease Essay Research Paper 4 COMMON
Heart Disease Essay, Research Paper 4 COMMON HEART DISEASE 1. CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE : IS THE DAMAGE TO THE HEART THAT CAN OCCUR BEFORE OR DURING THE BIRTH OF A BABY. THAT HAPPENS
On Women Turning 70 Essay Research Paper
Hasan Elmdauis 2/21/01 WST 101 On Women Turning 70: Honoring the Voices of Wisdom On Women Turning 70 is a book that is made up of interviews with several older women who took their biggest
Aging As A Mental Issue Essay Research
Paper Aging comes naturally and people should not be frighten be it. As it turns out the fear of this process is enough to speed it up. The negative attitude is a very powerful factor in this process and has a great effect on the physical aspect of aging. It is enough to put people into deep depression or lose their confidence with many other things like good posture.
Aging Advertisement Essay Research Paper Terry Argie12301Soc
Aging Advertisement Essay, Research Paper Terry Argie 12/3/01 Soc 303 Aging Advertisement How do you feel about aging and growing old? Does the image of growing old conjure up thoughts of loss of vitality, energy and health? Admittedly, as we age, our physical and mental capabilities may deteriorate. This is not to be a cause for concern- it happens to everyone and is part of the miracle of life.