The mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm ) is the main driver of oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS). The inner mitochondrial membrane (IMM), consisting of cristae and inner boundary membranes (IBM), is considered to carry a uniform ΔΨm . However, sequestration of OXPHOS components in cristae membranes necessitates a re-examination of the equipotential representation of the IMM. We developed an approach to monitor ΔΨm at the resolution of individual cristae. We found that the IMM was divided into segments with distinct ΔΨm , corresponding to cristae and IBM. ΔΨm was higher at cristae compared to IBM. Treatment with oligomycin increased, whereas FCCP decreased, ΔΨm heterogeneity along the IMM. Impairment of cristae structure through deletion of MICOS-complex components or Opa1 diminished this intramitochondrial heterogeneity of ΔΨm . Lastly, we determined that different cristae within the individual mitochondrion can have disparate membrane potentials and that interventions causing acute depolarization may affect some cristae while sparing others. Altogether, our data support a new model in which cristae within the same mitochondrion behave as independent bioenergetic units, preventing the failure of specific cristae from spreading dysfunction to the rest.

中文翻译：

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同一线粒体内的各个嵴表现出不同的膜电位并且功能独立。

线粒体膜电位 (ΔΨm ) 是氧化磷酸化 (OXPHOS) 的主要驱动因素。线粒体内膜 (IMM) 由嵴和内边界膜 (IBM) 组成，被认为具有均匀的 ΔΨm 。然而，OXPHOS 成分在嵴膜中的隔离需要重新检查 IMM 的等电位表示。我们开发了一种以单个嵴分辨率监测 ΔΨm 的方法。我们发现IMM被分成具有不同ΔΨm的部分，对应于嵴和IBM。与 IBM 相比，嵴处的 ΔΨm 更高。寡霉素处理沿IMM 的ΔΨm 异质性增加，而FCCP 减少。通过删除 MICOS 复合物成分或 Opa1 来损害嵴结构，减少了 ΔΨm 的线粒体内异质性。最后，我们确定单个线粒体内的不同嵴可能具有不同的膜电位，并且导致急性去极化的干预措施可能会影响一些嵴，同时不影响其他嵴。总而言之，我们的数据支持一种新模型，其中同一线粒体内的嵴表现为独立的生物能量单位，防止特定嵴的故障将功能障碍传播到其余部分。