# @chan-zuckerberg-initiative on LinkedIn

- **Type:** Video
- **Original URL:** https://www.linkedin.com/posts/chan-zuckerberg-initiative_a-century-old-mysterywhy-mitochondria-sometimes-activity-7374102533293694977--f3n
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/57732705-companychan-zuckerberg-initiative-linkedin
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/postThumbnails/7f89633ff3.jpg
- **Posted:** 2025-09-17T15:30:48.112+00:00

## Caption

A century-old mystery—why mitochondria sometimes form a temporary “string of pearls” shape—just got a lot clearer.

Using ultra-fast microscopy and direct micromechanical manipulation, Gabriel (Gav) Sturm and team demonstrated that tension, pressure, and elasticity—not specific genes—govern this transformation.
They observed pearling across neurons, skin cells, T cells, and even yeast, supporting a generalizable, physics-based model of mitochondrial behavior.

Understanding these transitions could help explain how mitochondria support cellular functions across systems—from brain activity to immune response.

As Gabriel put it: “I like to think of this system as the energetic circulatory system—a highway of mobile mitochondria calibrating the energy-needs of the organism.”

This is what it looks like when biology and physics work in sync.

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 395
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- **Comments:** 9

## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Chan Zuckerberg Initiative | @ChanZuckerberg | https://gondola.cc/ChanZuckerberg | Non-Profit Organization |
| Tony | @tonyamrich | https://gondola.cc/tonyamrich | Social Media Manager |

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