Summary
Anaerobiosis or exposure to the metabolic inhibitors potassium cyanide and Antimycin A produced changes in the form of living amoebae. These were accompanied by mitochondrial changes in fixed cells. Increasing the anaerobic period increased the percentage of mitochondria affected and resulted in a gradual reduction and eventual loss of the condensed Type I mitochondria ofAmoeba proteus. The rounder Type II mitochondria were not lost but underwent varying degrees of disruption, vesiculation of the cristae being evident after 5 hours exposures and matrical inclusions after 18 hours exposures. Similar cristal vesiculation was seen after 30 minutes treatments with potassium cyanide. Providing treatments were terminated before cell viability was lost, all mitochondrial abnormalities were reversible on return to normal culturing conditions. The longer the period of anaerobiosis the longer was the recovery time required for the return of normal mitochondrial structure and the re-equilibration of control Type I to Type II mitochondrial frequencies. The relationship between mitochondrial conformation and functional integrity is discussed in the light of these findings.
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Smith, R.A., Bell, L.G.E. & Ord, M.J. The effects of anaerobiosis and metabolic inhibitors on mitochondrial ultrastructure inAmoeba proteus . Protoplasma 99, 275–288 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01275801
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01275801