The Mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) Pathway Regulates Mitochondrial Oxygen Consumption and Oxidative Capacity

Abstract

Metabolic rate and the subsequent production of reactive oxygen species are thought to contribute to the rate of aging in a wide range of species. The target of rapamycin (TOR) is a well conserved serine/threonine kinase that regulates cell growth in response to nutrient status. Here we demonstrate that in mammalian cells the mammalian TOR (mTOR) pathway plays a significant role in determining both resting oxygen consumption and oxidative capacity. In particular, we demonstrate that the level of complex formation between mTOR and one of its known protein partners, raptor, correlated with overall mitochondrial activity. Disruption of this complex following treatment with the mTOR pharmacological inhibitor rapamycin lowered mitochondrial membrane potential, oxygen consumption, and ATP synthetic capacity. Subcellular fractionation revealed that mTOR as well as mTOR-raptor complexes can be purified in the mitochondrial fraction. Using two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis, we further demonstrated that inhibiting mTOR with rapamycin resulted in a dramatic alteration in the mitochondrial phosphoproteome. RNA interference-mediated knockdown of TSC2, p70 S6 kinase (S6K1), raptor, or rictor demonstrates that mTOR regulates mitochondrial activity independently of its previously identified cellular targets. Finally we demonstrate that mTOR activity may play an important role in determining the relative balance between mitochondrial and non-mitochondrial sources of ATP generation. These results may provide insight into recent observations linking the TOR pathway to life span regulation of lower organisms.For nearly a century it has been appreciated that an organism's intrinsic metabolic rate is an important determinant of life span. This theory, initially known as the "rate of living" hypothesis, has merged with another proposed mechanism for aging first enunciated by Denham Harman (1) and often called the "free radical theory of aging." The basis for combining these two hypotheses came from observations demonstrating that mitochondria determine both cellular and organismal metabolic rate and that these organelles also produce a continuous stream of reactive oxygen species. Although both the rate of living and the "free radical" theories of aging remain viable and attractive explanations for determining the rate of aging in a wide range of species, neither hypothesis has been conclusively proven (2-4).Surprisingly relatively little is known regarding what regulates the intrinsic metabolic rate of an organism. Similarly on a cellular level the molecular regulation of mitochondrial activity is incompletely understood. Resting oxygen consumption presumably is set at a point to meet overall energetic demands. Nonetheless for most cells this basal respiration is considerably below the maximum oxidative capacity of the mitochondria. The maximal oxidative or ATP synthetic capacity can be easily assessed by treating the cell with various chemical uncouplers and thereby producing the maximal degree of respiration. It is imp...

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