Optimize IAS
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Courses
    • Prelims Test Series
      • LAQSHYA 2026 Prelims Mentorship
    • Mains Mentorship
      • Arjuna 2026 Mains Mentorship
  • Portal Login
  • Home
  • About Us
  • Courses
    • Prelims Test Series
      • LAQSHYA 2026 Prelims Mentorship
    • Mains Mentorship
      • Arjuna 2026 Mains Mentorship
  • Portal Login

First mitochondrial transplant in six children shows promise

  • January 1, 2023
  • Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
  • Category: DPN Topics
No Comments

 

 

First mitochondrial transplant in six children shows promise

Subject: Science and Technology

Context:

  • In a world first, six children with a rare disorder caused by deletions in the genomes of their mitochondria– the cellular compartments essential for energy generation- have been successfully treated with donor mitochondria from their mother.

More on the news:

  • Doctors transferred healthy mitochondria into the children’s haematopoietic stem cells, which give rise to blood cells.

About Mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT):

  • Mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT), sometimes called mitochondrial donation, is the replacement of mitochondria in one or more cells to prevent or ameliorate disease.
  • MRT originated as a special form of in vitro fertilisation in which some or all of the future baby’s mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) comes from a third party.
  • This technique is used in cases when mothers carry genes for mitochondrial diseases.
  • The therapy is approved for use in the United Kingdom.
  • A second application is to use autologous mitochondria to replace mitochondria in damaged tissue to restore the tissue to a functional state.
  • This has been used in clinical research in the United States to treat cardiac-compromised newborns.

What is Mitochondria?

  • It was first described by a German pathologist named Richard Altmann in the year 1890.
  • Popularly known as the “Powerhouse of the cell,”mitochondria are a double membrane-bound organelle found in most eukaryotic organisms.
  • They are found inside the cytoplasm and essentially function as the cell’s “digestive system.”
  • They play a major role in breaking down nutrients and generating energy-rich molecules for the cell.
  • Many of the biochemical reactions involved in cellular respiration take place within the mitochondria.

Functions of Mitochondria:

  • The most important function of mitochondria is to produce energy through the process of oxidative phosphorylation.
  • It is also involved in the following process:
    • Regulates the metabolic activity of the cell
    • Promotes the growth of new cells and cell multiplication
    • Helps in detoxifying ammonia in the liver cells
    • Plays an important role in apoptosis or programmed cell death
    • Responsible for building certain parts of the blood and various hormones like testosterone and oestrogen
    • Helps in maintaining an adequate concentration of calcium ions within the compartments of the cell
    • It is also involved in various cellular activities like cellular differentiation, cell signalling, cell senescence, controlling the cell cycle and also in cell growth.
  • Mitochondrial diseases: Alpers Disease, Barth Syndrome, Kearns-Sayre syndrome (KSS).
First mitochondrial transplant in six children shows promise Science and tech

Recent Posts

  • Daily Prelims Notes 23 March 2025 March 23, 2025
  • Challenges in Uploading Voting Data March 23, 2025
  • Fertilizers Committee Warns Against Under-Funding of Nutrient Subsidy Schemes March 23, 2025
  • Tavasya: The Fourth Krivak-Class Stealth Frigate Launched March 23, 2025
  • Indo-French Naval Exercise Varuna 2024 March 23, 2025
  • No Mismatch Between Circulating Influenza Strains and Vaccine Strains March 23, 2025
  • South Cascade Glacier March 22, 2025
  • Made-in-India Web Browser March 22, 2025
  • Charting a route for IORA under India’s chairship March 22, 2025
  • Mar-a-Lago Accord and dollar devaluation March 22, 2025

About

If IAS is your destination, begin your journey with Optimize IAS.

Hi There, I am Santosh I have the unique distinction of clearing all 6 UPSC CSE Prelims with huge margins.

I mastered the art of clearing UPSC CSE Prelims and in the process devised an unbeatable strategy to ace Prelims which many students struggle to do.

Contact us

moc.saiezimitpo@tcatnoc

For More Details

Work with Us

Connect With Me

Course Portal
Search