Sex-dependent differences in macaque brain mitochondria.

Overview

Mitochondrial bioenergetics in females and males is different. Whether mitochondria from male and female brains display differences in mitochondrial enzymes is unknown. We measured the function of mitochondrial complexes from the brains of male and female macaques (Macaca mulatta). Cerebral tissue of macaques males exhibit elevated content and activity of mitochondrial complex I (NADH:ubiquinone oxidoreductase) and activity of complex II compared to females. No significant differences between sexes were found in the content of α-ketoglutarate dehydrogenase and activities of cytochrome c oxidase and F₁F_o ATPase. Our results, underscore the need for further investigations to elucidate sex-related mitochondrial distinctions in humans.