Noninvasive assessment of mitochondrial organization in three-dimensional tissues reveals changes associated with cancer development.

ABSTRACT: Mitochondrial organization is often altered to accommodate cellular bioenergetic and biosynthetic demands. Changes in metabolism are a hallmark of a number of diseases, including cancer; however, the interdependence between mitochondrial metabolic function and organization is not well understood. Here, we present a noninvasive, automated and quantitative method to assess mitochondrial organization in three-dimensional (3D) tissues using exclusively endogenous two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) and show that mitochondrial organization reflects alterations in metabolic activities. Specifically, we examine the organization of mitochondria within live, engineered epithelial tissue equivalents that mimic normal and precancerous human squamous epithelial tissues. We identify unique patterns

SUBMITTER: Xylas J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4837461 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature