Mitochondria

Mitochondria are membrane-bound organelles in eukaryotic cells that produce much of the cell’s ATP through oxidative phosphorylation and perform other metabolic functions.

Oxidative phosphorylation: The mitochondrial process that uses an electron transport chain and proton gradient to synthesize ATP. It produces most mitochondrial ATP across the inner membrane.
Mitochondrial matrix: The innermost compartment of a mitochondrion, enclosed by its inner membrane. The matrix contains enzymes for the citric acid cycle and mitochondrial DNA.
Endosymbiotic theory: The theory that some eukaryotic organelles originated as free-living bacteria engulfed by ancestral cells. It explains the bacterial ancestry of mitochondria.
Mitochondrial disease: A group of disorders caused by impaired mitochondrial function, often affecting energy-demanding tissues. Defects in mitochondrial genes or proteins can disrupt energy production and other functions.
Fermentation: An anaerobic pathway that regenerates NAD⁺ by transferring electrons to organic molecules. Unlike oxidative phosphorylation, fermentation can sustain ATP production without oxygen.
Electron transport chain: A series of membrane protein complexes that transfer electrons and pump protons across a biological membrane. Its complexes establish the proton gradient that powers mitochondrial ATP synthesis.
Cristae: Folds of the inner mitochondrial membrane that increase its surface area. Cristae provide extensive membrane area for respiratory complexes and ATP synthase.
Lynn Margulis: An American biologist who developed and strongly advocated the modern endosymbiotic theory. Her work helped establish endosymbiosis as an explanation for mitochondrial origins.
Mitochondrial inheritance: The transmission of genetic material carried in mitochondria, usually from the mother in humans. The many mitochondrial copies in an egg usually determine maternal transmission.
Glycolysis: A cytosolic pathway that breaks glucose into pyruvate while producing ATP and NADH. It generates ATP outside mitochondria and can continue when oxygen is unavailable.

Linked from 55 pages