[Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oligomer Formation in Neurodegenerative Diseases].

Mitochondrial respiratory chain complexes are responsible for the oxidative phosphorylation system, and the association of these complexes is called a supercomplex. Since the formation of supercomplexes en- hances energy production and reduces electron leakage, the destabilization of supercomplexes may increase oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction in the presence of aging and neurodegenerative disease. Both blue native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (BN-PAGE) and high-resolution clear native (hrCN) - PAGE are effective to examine supercomplex formation. Since the sensitivity of the in-gel enzyme activity assay of hrCN-PAGE is higher than that of BN-PAGE, we used hrCN-PAGE and two-dimensional hrCN/ SDS-PAGE to examine supercomplex formation in human mononuclear leukocytes, and compared them in relation to the sex and age group. We also applied the results to the analysis of soluble oligomer formation in neurodegenerative disease. Herein, we introduce the possibility of applying a clinical laboratory test for neurodegenerative diseases. [Review].