Figure 3.

Model of the influence of mitochondrial function on brain aging. Increased oxidative stress is a characteristic of brain aging with an increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production and/or defects in the antioxidant system. Mitochondrial dynamics protect the cells (especially highly differentiated cells such as neurons) against the accumulation of mitochondrial mutations. When the system is in balance, this leads to normal aging. However, when a pathological threshold is passed (dashed line), impaired mitochondrial dynamics may lead to the accumulation of defective organelle, triggering a cascade of event inducing neurodegeneration. The fact that neurons are post‐mitotic compartmentalized cells, as well as gender differences, brings additional points of complexity to the system. ETC.; electron transport chain, mtDNA; mitochondrial DNA.