Older mouse kidneys showed altered mitochondrial structure
An imaging analysis of three male mice per age group, aged 3 months or 2 years, found disrupted inner folds in mitochondria.
Limit: One imaging analysis included only three mice per age group
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In an animal experiment, researchers used electron microscopy to compare kidney tubule cells from male C57BL/6J mice aged 3 months and 2 years. One imaging analysis included three animals per age group. Mitochondria, the cells’ energy-producing structures, had less organized inner folds in older kidneys. Their three-dimensional shapes were also less complex. The mitochondrial contact site and cristae organizing system, a group of proteins that organizes these folds, was impaired with age.
In separate experiments in human HEK293 cells grown in the lab, disrupting this protein group increased reactive oxygen species, molecules that can damage cells. The authors hypothesized that disruption worsens mitochondrial dysfunction, creating a cycle of mitochondrial deterioration and damage from reactive molecules that affects kidney health.
Why it matters
Declining kidney function is a concern in aging. The findings suggest a potential mechanism underlying the increased frequency of kidney disease with age.
Caveats
Comparing mice of different ages does not establish that the structural changes caused kidney disease. The mouse experiments used males, and one imaging analysis included only three animals per age group.
- Lipid and ceramide metabolism
- Mitochondrial fission and fusion
- Oxidative stress and ROS signaling
- Mitochondrion
- Reactive oxygen species
- Mice
The paper
Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati; Vanderbilt University
Aging Cell, May 2026, Open access
