# Mechanisms linking mitochondrial form and function

> **NIH NIH R35** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS · 2021 · $530,094

## Abstract

Summary
Mitochondria are endosymbiotic organelles and have retained a reduced genome
packaged into 100-1000 copies of nucleoids per cell, distributed within dynamic
mitochondria “syncytia”. Mitochondria are the metabolic hubs of eukaryotic cells, producing
ATP via oxidative phosphorylation and other critical building blocks. They have evolved to
behave dynamically and to be an integrating platform for the assembly and regulation of
signaling pathways, such as cell death and innate immunity. Given their central roles, it is
not surprising that that mitochondrial dysfunction is associated with an increasingly large
proportion of human inherited disorders and with common diseases, such as
neurodegenerative disorders, metabolic syndromes, and cancer. To gain insight into the
roles of mitochondria in sickness and in health, we are focused on how mitochondrial
behavior is controlled within cells and how this behavior is intertwined with metabolism and
cell behavior. Our current research addresses the outstanding questions of how
mitochondrial DNA copy number and transmission is controlled in cells, how the
mitochondrial inner membrane is differentiated into distinct domains and how mitochondrial
behavior, metabolism and cell behavior are integrated. Addressing these questions will
illuminate how mitochondria contribute to cellular homeostasis and pathogenesis.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10205864
- **Project number:** 1R35GM141800-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT DAVIS
- **Principal Investigator:** Jodi M. Nunnari
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $530,094
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-05-01 → 2022-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10205864

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10205864, Mechanisms linking mitochondrial form and function (1R35GM141800-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10205864. Licensed CC0.

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