Dynamic regulation of mitochondrial transcription as a mechanism of cellular adaptation

Eukaryotes control nearly every cellular process in part by modulating the transcription of genes encoded by their nuclear genome. However, these cells are faced with the added complexity of possessing a second genome, within the mitochondria, which encodes critical components of several essential processes, including energy metabolism and macromolecule biosynthesis. As these cellular processes require gene products encoded by both genomes, cells have adopted strategies for linking mitochondrial gene expression to nuclear gene expression and other dynamic cellular events. Here we discuss examples of several mechanisms that have been identified, by which eukaryotic cells link extramitochondrial signals to dynamic alterations in mitochondrial transcription. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Mitochondrial Gene Expression. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.