Regensburg 2016 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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DY: Fachverband Dynamik und Statistische Physik

DY 31: Poster - Pattern Formation

DY 31.9: Poster

Dienstag, 8. März 2016, 18:15–21:00, Poster C

Network properties of mitochondria in mammalian cells — •Lorenz Stadler, Sven Bauernfeind, and Matthias Weiss — Experimental Physics I, University of Bayreuth

Mitochondria are the power plants of eukaryotic cells. Besides being the production site for ATP, they are involved in many other vital cellular functions, e.g. apoptosis and Ca2+ homoiostasis. In contrast to textbook illustrations, mitochondria typically form extensive networks throughout mammalian cells rather than being individual granule-like organelles. Mitochondrial networks are subject to constant remodeling, i.e. mitochondrial tubes undergo continuous fission and fusion cycles. To gain insights into the network dynamics, we have analyzed mitochondrial phenotypes in untreated and drug-treated HeLa cells by confocal live cell imaging. Using a custom-made analysis tool, we have determined topological, geometrical, and polymeric parameters of the mitochondrial network. As a result, we observed that the overwhelming majority of nontrivial network nodes are three-way junctions with an exponential distribution of connecting link lengths. Moreover, our data suggest an immediate reaction of the mitochondrial network phenotype to a drug-induced breakdown of the cytoskeleton, whereas stabilization of microtubules had little effect.