The mitochondrial pyruvate carrier in health and disease: To carry or not to carry?
Mitochondria play a key role in energy metabolism, hosting the machinery for oxidative phosphorylation, the most efficient cellular pathway for generating ATP. A major checkpoint in this process is the transport of pyruvate produced by cytosolic glycolysis into the mitochondrial matrix, which is accomplished by the recently identified mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC). As the gatekeeper for pyruvate entry into mitochondria, the MPC is thought to be of fundamental importance in establishing the metabolic programming of a cell. This is especially relevant in the context of the aerobic glycolysis, also known as the Warburg effect, which is a hallmark in many types of cancer, and MPC loss of function promotes cancer growth. Moreover, mitochondrial pyruvate uptake is needed for efficient hepatic gluconeogenesis and the regulation of blood glucose levels. In this review we discuss recent advances in our knowledge of the MPC, and we argue that it may offer a promising target in diseases like cancer and type 2 diabetes. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Mitochondrial Channels edited by Pierre Sonveaux, Pierre Maechler and Jean-Claude Martinou.
['Bender|Tom|T|', 'Martinou|Jean-Claude|JC|']
D000818:Animals D027321:Anion Transport Proteins D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 D029721:Drosophila Proteins D004734:Energy Metabolism D005947:Glucose D006706:Homeostasis D006801:Humans D008099:Liver D008322:Mammals D033681:Mitochondrial Membrane Transport Proteins D051336:Mitochondrial Membranes D024101:Mitochondrial Proteins D027501:Monocarboxylic Acid Transporters D009369:Neoplasms D010085:Oxidative Phosphorylation D019289:Pyruvic Acid D029701:Saccharomyces cerevisiae Proteins
Mitochondrial pyruvate carrier Mitochondria Metabolism Warburg effect Gluconeogenesis