Recent research has made significant progress in the field of mitochondrial donation, also since the Nature article. Studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells can transfer mitochondria to injured cells, potentially offering a new therapeutic approach for mitochondrial diseases (Gomzikova 2021). However, concerns about the safety of these technologies have been raised, particularly regarding the possibility of mtDNA carryover (Komesaroff 2022). Despite these concerns, mitochondrial donation has been approved in the UK and is being considered in Australia (Craven 2020, Nicol 2020). New techniques, such as genome editing tools, are being developed to increase the efficacy of mitochondrial donation (Herbert 2023). Furthermore, the potential of mitochondrial transplantation for organ rescue has been explored (McCully 2022).

Mitochondrial donation has been proposed as a solution to allow carriers of mtDNA mutations to have disease-free children.  Legislation in the UK and Australia has paved the way for research on mitochondrial donation technologies, but concerns about safety persist. 

True or False?

Which statement accurately reflects the findings of Kang et al.'s study?

What is the significance of the study conducted by Kang et al. mentioned in the article?

What are some current or potential strategies to prevent the transmission of mitochondrial DNA mutations to offspring mentioned in the article?

Which technique involves transferring nuclear DNA from an egg containing mutated mtDNA into a donor egg lacking a nucleus?

Which statement accurately describes mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and its role in genetic diseases?

MITOCHONDRIA & THE ZYGOTE:

You have learned previously in the Cell Biology Lectures, that mitochondria are the “powerhouse” of the cell, generating energy in the form of ATP.

Your task is to:

1.  Draw your own diagram (detail below) demonstrating where the mitochondria of the zygote derive from. Include in your diagram steps in oogenesis and spermatogenesis, and steps including up until the zygote. You may have to do a little bit of research first, and review the Developmental Biology Lectures Lecture 10 and Lecture 11

• Please include where mitochondria are in all steps of oogenesis and spermatogenesis
• Include a label to indicate whether mitochondria in zygote is maternal or paternal
• Labelling should capture as many structures as possible

• Just include one step of mitosis (of eg spermatogonia); then meiosis I and meiosis II; then differentiation.  

NOTE: Students will NOT be assessed on their artistic abilities, rather the accuracy, detail and clarity of student understanding of the question. 

2.  Requirements:

• • Diagram should be drawn by hand either with a pen/pencil OR electronically using a stylus (either of these are preferred), OR
  • Alternatively, you can use .ppt tools/shapes

  • Students should not use existing diagrams such as Biorender/Google images
  • Students should incorporate labels into their diagrams (no descriptions, labels only). This should include enough drawings/labelling for this information to be inferred. Labelling is a few words or up to a short sentence.
  • A figure legend is not required. 

  • Convert your file to PDF.
  • No more than ONE A4-page of work.
  • No smaller than 12-point font.
  • Put your name on the document & upload below.
  • If you rely heavily on sources for your diagrams, please reference these on the bottom of the document (on the same page). If you draw your own image without relying on sources, you do not need to reference. If in doubt, reference.  Please use Vancouver 2022.

20 MARKS TOTAL

Marking criteria:

Which statement accurately summarises the environmental challenges highlighted in the passage?

 SCOPUS is one of many databases that is useful for sourcing:

If your answer is incorrect, please watch the video again (previous page) before re-attempting this question.

You are writing a report on new pharmaceutical treatments for heart disease. During your research you find this article by McKay (2015) .

Can this report be used in your assignment?