Novel reporter of the PINK1-Parkin mitophagy pathway identifies its damage sensor in the import gate
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ABSTRACT: Damaged mitochondria can be cleared from the cell by mitophagy, using a pathway formed by the recessive Parkinson’s disease genes PINK1 and Parkin. Whether the pathway senses diverse forms of mitochondrial damage by a common mechanism, however, remains uncertain. Here, using a novel Parkin reporter in genome-wide screens, we identified that diverse forms of mitochondrial damage converge on loss of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) to activate PINK1. Loss of MMP, but not the PAM import motor, blocked progression of PINK1 import through the translocase of the inner membrane (TIM23), causing it to remain bound to the translocase of the outer membrane (TOM). Ablation of TIM23 was sufficient to arrest PINK1 in TOM, irrespective of MMP. Meanwhile, TOM (including subunit TOMM5) was required for PINK1 retention on the mitochondrial surface. The energy-state outside of the mitochondria further modulated the pathway by controlling the rate of new PINK1 synthesis. Together, our findings point to a convergent mechanism of PINK1-Parkin activation by mitochondrial damage: loss of MMP stalls PINK1 import during its transfer from TOM to TIM23.
ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens
PROVIDER: GSE298056 | GEO | 2025/08/06
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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