Repository logo
 

Enhancing folic acid metabolism suppresses defects associated with loss of Drosophila mitofusin.

Accepted version
Peer-reviewed

Change log

Authors

Garrido-Maraver, Juan 
Celardo, Ivana 
Costa, Ana C 
Lehmann, Susann 
Loh, Samantha HY 

Abstract

Mutations in the mitochondrial GTPase mitofusin 2 (MFN2) cause Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 2 (CMT2A), a form of peripheral neuropathy that compromises axonal function. Mitofusins promote mitochondrial fusion and regulate mitochondrial dynamics. They are also reported to be involved in forming contacts between mitochondria and the endoplasmic reticulum. The fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, is a powerful tool to model human neurodegenerative diseases, including CMT2A. Here, we have downregulated the expression of the Drosophila mitofusin (dMfn RNAi) in adult flies and showed that this activates mitochondrial retrograde signalling and is associated with an upregulation of genes involved in folic acid (FA) metabolism. Additionally, we demonstrated that pharmacological and genetic interventions designed to increase the FA metabolism pathway suppresses the phenotype of the dMfn RNAi flies. We conclude that strategies to increase FA metabolism may ameliorate diseases, such as peripheral neuropathies, that are associated with loss of mitochondrial function. A video abstract for this article is available at  https://youtu.be/fs1G-QRo6xI .

Description

Keywords

Activating Transcription Factor 4, Animals, Axonal Transport, Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease, Disease Models, Animal, Down-Regulation, Drosophila, Drosophila Proteins, Folic Acid, Locomotion, Male, Membrane Proteins, Mitochondria, Phenotype, RNA Interference, Reactive Oxygen Species

Journal Title

Cell Death Dis

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2041-4889
2041-4889

Volume Title

10

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
Medical Research Council (MC_UU_00025/3)
Medical Research Council (MC_U132674518)
Medical Research Council