Counting target molecules by exponential polymerase chain reaction: Copy number of mitochondrial DNA in rat tissues
Abstract
In this report, we show that the actual number of target molecules of the polymerase chain reaction can be determined by measuring the concentration of product accumulating in consecutive cycles. The equation describing product accumulation, log Nn = log eff x n + log N0, can be analyzed by linear regression and the molar concentration of target at cycle zero, N0, is obtained. Using this new approach, the actual content of mitochondrial DNA was determined in rat tissues and ranged from 116 x 10(9) molecules/g in fast-twitch skeletal muscle to 743 x 10(9) molecules/g in liver. Using morphometric data from the literature, mitochondria were found to contain 1 to 3 DNA molecules. There was no relation between the oxidative capacity of a tissue and its content of mitochondrial DNA, indicating that transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms rather than gene dosage, as postulated by others, determine to what extent the mitochondrial genome is expressed.
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The liver is extremely rich in mitochondria, with each hepatocyte containing 1000-2000 mitochondria.
“The liver is extremely rich in mitochondria due to its critical metabolic function in the body, with each hepatocyte containing 1000–2000 mitochondria9.”
From Hepatocyte mitochondria-derived danger signals directly activate hepatic stellate cells and drive progression of liver fibrosis (2020) · cites this paper as [9]
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- Authors
- Wiesner, R. J., Rüegg, J. C., & Morano, I.
- Affiliations
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- ORCID
- Wiesner, Rudolf J.
- Venue
- Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 1992-03
- Volume
- 183
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 553-559
- ISSN
- 0006-291X (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1987960916
- Cited by
- 197
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 5 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 10
- FWCI
- 2.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Mitochondrial Function and Pathology
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology Techniques and Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Adipose Tissue and Metabolism
- Keywords
- mitochondrial DNA copy number, product accumulation, rat tissues, skeletal muscle, liver, oxidative capacity, gene dosage, post-transcriptional regulation
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Base Sequence, DNA, Mitochondrial, Multigene Family, Liver, Molecular Sequence Data, Muscles, Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid, Tissue Distribution, Polymerase Chain Reaction, Rats
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