MORPHOFUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MITOCHONDRIA AND IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL APPROACHES TO THEIR STUDY

Abstract

Violation of the functions of mitochondria is accompanied by any disease, so further study of the functional characteristics of mitochondria in various pathologies in the clinic and experiment, as well as the search for new diagnostic markers is promising and relevant. The purpose of this review is to summarize and systematize the literature data on morphofunctional characteristics and molecular immunohistochemical markers used to assess the function of mitochondria. The most characteristic feature of these organelles is the presence of a large number of enzymes involved in oxidative phosphorylation and energy supply to the cell. Also, the aim was to allocate so-called mitochondrial diseases associated with genetic, structural, biochemical defects of mitochondria, including those leading to energy deficiency of cells. Mitochondrial diseases are transmitted through the female line, since only the ovum contains mitochondria. Hereditary mitochondrial diseases associated with mutations in the genes encoding the synthesis of mitochondrial proteins – Bart’s syndrome, Kearns – Sayre syndrome, Pearson’s syndrome, and others are known. In addition, mitochondria are involved in the storage and transmission of hereditary information, apoptosis and plastic processes. There are a number of molecular markers, the use of which allows a detailed study of the activity of mitochondria under various experimental effects. The nearly thousand mitochondrial markers are known, but this review encloses the main ones.