FIGURE 1.

Relationship between mitophagy and MS. MS refers to a conglomeration of metabolic disturbances that encompass overweight, IR, hypertension and abnormal lipid levels. Promotion of mitophagy occurs through specific receptors on the outer mitochondrial membrane or through ubiquitin molecules attached to proteins on the mitochondrial surface, resulting in the formation of autophagosomes surrounding the mitochondria. A growing number of studies have shown that mitophagy has been linked to a range of metabolic disturbances including obesity, IR, T2DM, NAFLD, atherosclerosis (AS), and heart disease, which are pathologically associated with mitophagy dysfunction and may influence the onset of MetS. Source: Ref [8].