Figure - PMC

Skip to main content

An official website of the United States government

Here's how you know

Here's how you know

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

View full-text article in PMC

. 2018 Dec 6;12:306. doi: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00306

Search in PMC
Search in PubMed
View in NLM Catalog
Add to search

Copyright © 2018 Hoffmann and Spengler.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

PMC Copyright notice

Human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The mtDNA consists of a light (inner) and heavy (outer) circular DNA strand with each containing a separate origin of replication termed O_L and O_H, respectively. The mtDNA comprises 16,569 nucleotides and encodes 37 genes, including 2 ribosomal and 22 transport RNAs required for protein synthesis. Mitochondrial encoded proteins constitute essential parts of the respiratory chain by contributing seven subunits to complex I, one subunit to complex III, three subunits to complex IV, and two subunits to complex V (adenosine triphosphate, ATP synthase). Promoters on the heavy strand (P_H1 and P_H2) and on the light strand (P_L) drive mtDNA gene expression. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) binds to the mtDNA near the D-loop straddling the O_H origin. Colors for each gene match the respiratory chain complexes shown in Figures 2, 5. 1 is adapted from Picard and McEwen (2018) license number 4360110364852.