Mitochondrial dynamics during spermatogenesis

Mitochondrial fusion and fission (mitochondrial dynamics) are homeostatic processes that safeguard normal cellular function. This relationship is especially strong in tissues with constitutively high energy demands, such as brain, heart and skeletal muscle. Less is known about the role of mitochondrial dynamics in developmental systems that involve changes in metabolic function. One such system is spermatogenesis. The first mitochondrial dynamics gene, Fuzzy onions (Fzo), was discovered in 1997 to mediate mitochondrial fusion during Drosophila spermatogenesis. In mammals, however, the role of mitochondria' fusion during spermatogenesis remained unknown for nearly two decades after discovery of Fzo. Mammalian spermatogenesis is one of the most complex and lengthy differentiation processes in biology, transforming spermatogonial stem cells into highly specialized sperm cells over a 5-week period. This elaborate differentiation process requires several developmentally regulated mitochondrial and metabolic transitions, making it an attractive model system for studying mitochondria' dynamics in vivo. We review the emerging role of mitochondrial biology, and especially its dynamics, during the development of the male germ line.