IRP researchers first to develop 3D structure of twinkle protein

Friday, August 5, 2022

Researchers hope discovery leads to potential treatments for mitochondrial diseases

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have developed a three-dimensional structure that allows them to see how and where disease mutations on the twinkle protein can lead to mitochondrial diseases. The protein is involved in helping cells use energy our bodies convert from food. Prior to the development of this 3D structure, researchers only had models and were unable to determine how these mutations contribute to disease. Mitochondrial diseases are a group of inherited conditions that affect 1 in 5,000 people and have very few treatments.

“For the first time, we can map the mutations that are causing a number of these devastating diseases,” said lead author Amanda A. Riccio, Ph.D., and researcher in the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Mitochondrial DNA Replication Group, which is part of NIH. “Clinicians can now see where these mutations lie and can use this information to help pinpoint causes and help families make choices, including decisions about having more children.”

The new findings will be particularly relevant for developing targeted treatments for patients who suffer from mitochondrial diseases such as progressive external ophthalmoplegia, a condition that can lead to loss of muscle functions involved in eye and eyelid movement; Perrault syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that can cause hearing loss; infantile-onset spinocerebellar ataxia, a hereditary neurological disorder; and hepatocerebral mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion syndrome, a hereditary disease that can lead to liver failure and neurological complications during infancy.

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