The complex interplay between mitochondrial dynamics and cardiac metabolism

Abstract

Mitochondria are highly dynamic organelles, capable of undergoing constant fission and fusion events, forming networks. These dynamic events allow the transmission of chemical and physical messengers and the exchange of metabolites within the cell. In this article we review the signaling mechanisms controlling mitochondrial fission and fusion, and its relationship with cell bioenergetics, especially in the heart. Furthermore we also discuss how defects in mitochondrial dynamics might be involved in the pathogenesis of metabolic cardiac diseases.