Effect of eEF2 on mitochondria metabolism
As mitochondrial dynamics is closely associated with metabolism of this
organelle, (12 ) we next determined whether the expression of eEF2
affects the mitochondrial metabolism in MCF-7 cells. Fig. 3ashows that as compared with the control cells transfected with a
non-targeting siRNA, the cells with knockdown of eEF2 showed a reduction
in oxygen consumption rate (OCR), indicating an impaired metabolic
activity of the mitochondria. Moreover, the expression of superoxide
dismutase 2 (SOD2), an enzyme critical in controlling the mitochondrial
reactive oxygen species (ROS), was increased in the cells with knockdown
of eEF2 (Fig. 3b ), suggesting an increase of oxidative stress
that is associated with the impaired mitochondrial function. These
results suggest that the coincident changes of OCR and SOD2 in the cells
with depletion of eEF2 may be a consequence of altered mitochondrial
dynamics.