Cytosolic dynamin-related protein 1 (Drp1, also known as DNM1L) is required for both mitochondrial and peroxisomal fission. Drp1-dependent division of these organelles is facilitated by a number of adaptor proteins at mitochondrial and peroxisomal surfaces. To investigate the interplay of these adaptor proteins, we used geneediting technology to create a suite of cell lines lacking the adaptors MiD49 (also known as MIEF2), MiD51 (also known as MIEF1), Mff and Fis1. Increased mitochondrial connectivity was observed following loss of individual adaptors, and this was further enhanced following the combined loss of MiD51 and Mff. Moreover, loss of adaptors also conferred increased resistance of cells to intrinsic apoptotic stimuli, with MiD49 and MiD51 showing the more prominent role. Using a proximity-based biotin labeling approach, we found close associations between MiD51, Mff and Drp1, but not Fis1. Furthermore, we found that MiD51 can suppress Mff-dependent enhancement of Drp1 GTPase activity. Our data indicates that Mff and MiD51 regulate Drp1 in specific ways to promote mitochondrial fission.

Biogenesis of complex IV of the mitochondrial respiratory chain requires assembly factors for subunit maturation, co-factor attachment and stabilization of intermediate assemblies. A pathogenic mutation in COA6, leading to substitution of a conserved tryptophan for a cysteine residue, results in a loss of complex IV activity and cardiomyopathy. Here, we demonstrate that the complex IV defect correlates with a severe loss in complex IV assembly in patient heart but not fibroblasts. Complete loss of COA6 activity using gene editing in HEK293T cells resulted in a profound growth defect due to complex IV deficiency, caused by impaired biogenesis of the copper-bound mitochondrial DNA-encoded subunit COX2 and subsequent accumulation of complex IV assembly intermediates. We show that the pathogenic mutation in COA6 does not affect its import into mitochondria but impairs its maturation and stability. Furthermore, we show that COA6 has the capacity to bind copper and can associate with newly translated COX2 and the mitochondrial copper chaperone SCO1. Our data reveal that COA6 is intricately involved in the copper-dependent biogenesis of COX2.

Structure–function analyses driven by a crystal structure of the cytosolic domain of the Drp1 receptor MiD51 reveals a nucleotidyltransferase fold and nucleotide binding activity that is independent of its Drp1 binding activity.