Abstract
Megamitochondria induced by ethanol and hydrazine
in culture cells were detected under laser confocal
microscopy. Mitochondria were labeled in the
living state after incubation for 3 days in culture
media containing either ethanol or hydrazine. During
incubation, mitochondria began to enlarge and
reached maximum size in 3 days in the presence of
1—3% ethanol or hydrazine at concentrations of up
to 2 mM. Above these concentrations, cells became
degenerated. Since megamitochondria were formed
for such a short time and the number of mitochondria
per cell decreased progressively, the present
results also seem to support our previous
proposal that megamitochondria are formed by the
fusion of adjacent mitochondria. These results provide
us with a much simpler experimental system
for the study of the mechanism and the process of
megamitochondria formation, compared with animal
experiments.
