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MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit

 

The strategic mission of the MBU is to understand mitochondrial biology in health and disease, and to exploit this understanding to develop new therapies and improve human health.

 


 

Read more at: ISAC/M 2024: Inspiring Scientists at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research and the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit

ISAC/M 2024: Inspiring Scientists at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research and the MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit

5 March 2024

This free, widening participation programme for Cambridgeshire-based Year 12 students (16+) took place from 20-22 February (half-term) at the Cambridge Institute for Medical Research (CIMR) and MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit (MBU), in association with St Catharine's College , Cambridge. This was our second year of...


Read more at: Whitworth group research identifies an important PINK1/Parkin mitophagy regulator

Whitworth group research identifies an important PINK1/Parkin mitophagy regulator

20 February 2024

Mitochondrial dysfunction is a key pathogenic driver of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease (PD). Extensive research has established that the PD-linked genes, PINK1 and Parkin, are important factors mediating the degradation of dysfunctional mitochondria via mitophagy. Hence, there is intense interest in...


Read more at: Display on "Mitochondrial Energy" at the Irish Patchwork Society Exhibition

Display on "Mitochondrial Energy" at the Irish Patchwork Society Exhibition

14 February 2024

Mary Heseltine is a retired data analyst who now concentrates her interests in textiles. Mary contributed to a textile exhibition in connection with the celebration of the 1500 th anniversary of the birth of St Brigid, which opened in Dublin on 1 February 2024, in conjunction with the (new) early Spring Festival Bank...


Read more at: A break in mitochondrial endosymbiosis as a basis for inflammatory diseases

A break in mitochondrial endosymbiosis as a basis for inflammatory diseases

8 February 2024

A review co-authored by Professor Mike Murphy has been published in Nature . Mitochondria retain bacterial traits due to their endosymbiotic origin, but host cells do not recognize them as foreign because the organelles are sequestered. However, the regulated release of mitochondrial factors into the cytosol can trigger...


Read more at: Whitworth group research links mitochondrial calcium disruptions to multiple neurodegenerative diseases

Whitworth group research links mitochondrial calcium disruptions to multiple neurodegenerative diseases

23 January 2024

Mitochondrial dysfunction and calcium dysregulation are commonly observed in multiple neurodegenerative diseases, but mechanisms linking these are poorly understood in the context of neurodegeneration. In a study led by Dr Alex Whitworth (MRC Mitochondrial Biology Unit) and recently published in Cell Reports, Twyning et al...


Read more at: Research from the Minczuk and Prudent Groups on the cover of Nucleic Acids Research

Research from the Minczuk and Prudent Groups on the cover of Nucleic Acids Research

30 November 2023

A method paper describing a tool for automated, single-cell mitochondrial foci quantification and analysis- mtFociCounter - developed by Timo Rey, a former postdoc in the Minczuk Group , in collaboration with Luis Carlos Tábara, a postdoc in the Prudent Group , has been highlighted on the cover of the current issue of...


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Link to our Postgraduate Studies webpage

Life at the MRC MBU

Seminars and Events

MBU Seminars 2024

20 March - Professor Gerald Shulman

8 May - Prof Dr Aurelio Teleman

5 June - Prof Dr Alessandro Prigione

9 October - Professor Anne Curtis