Mitochondrial division and fusion play critical roles in maintaining functional mitochondria. Fzo1 is an outer mitochondrial membrane GTPase that played an essential role in mitochondrial fusion in budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Here, we report the characterization of the Schizosaccharomyces pombe homologue of S. cerevisiae Fzo1p, Fzo1. Disruption of the fzo1 gene in S. pombe results in a fragmented mitochondrial morphology and a dramatically reduced growth on glycerol medium phenotype, indicating that deletion of fzo1 compromises respiratory function. Fluorescence microscopy shows that Fzo1p is located in the mitochondria. Overexpressing Fzo1 from a heterologous promoter induces mitochondrial aggregation. We also find that dnm1 mutations could both block mitochondrial fragmentation and rescue respiration growth defect in Δfzo1 single mutant cells. Our results proposed that a genetic interaction between fzo1 and a balance between division‐ and fusion‐controlled mitochondrial shape and function in S. pombe. This study represents the first report of Fzo1 mediator of mitochondrial fusion in S. pombe.

中文翻译：

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dnm1 缺失阻止 Δfzo1 细胞中的线粒体断裂

线粒体分裂和融合在维持功能性线粒体中起着关键作用。Fzo1 是一种外线粒体膜 GTP 酶，在出芽酵母酿酒酵母的线粒体融合中发挥了重要作用。在这里，我们报告了酿酒酵母Fzo1p、Fzo1的粟酒裂殖酵母同系物的表征。S. pombe 中fzo1基因的破坏导致线粒体形态碎片化和甘油培养基表型的生长显着减少，表明fzo1 的缺失损害呼吸功能。荧光显微镜显示 Fzo1p 位于线粒体中。从异源启动子过度表达 Fzo1 会诱导线粒体聚集。我们还发现dnm1突变既可以阻止线粒体断裂，又可以挽救 Δ fzo1单突变细胞中的呼吸生长缺陷。我们的结果表明fzo1之间的遗传相互作用与S. pombe 中分裂和融合控制的线粒体形状和功能之间的平衡。这项研究代表了粟酒中线粒体融合的 Fzo1 介质的第一份报告。