Mitochondrial DNA variants influence mitochondrial bioenergetics in Drosophila melanogaster

The influence of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations on human disease has been extensively studied, but the impact of mutations within the adaptive range is debated. We studied males from lines of Drosophila melanogaster that have a highly standardized nuclear genome but different mtDNA, at two ages. We measured mitochondrial respiration on permeabilized muscle fibers, hydrogen peroxide production of isolated mitochondria and mtDNA copy number of whole individuals. The results show that a small set of naturally occurring mtDNA mutations can have a significant influence on mitochondrial bioenergetics that may change as the organism ages.