Targeting lipophilic cations to mitochondria.

Mitochondrial function and dysfunction contributes to a range of important aspects of biomedical research. Consequently there is considerable interest in developing approaches to modify and report on mitochondria in cells and in vivo. One approach has been to target bioactive molecules to mitochondria by conjugating them to lipophilic cations. Due to the large mitochondrial membrane potential, the cations are accumulated within mitochondria inside cells. This approach had been used to develop mitochondria-targeted antioxidants that selectively block mitochondrial oxidative damage and prevent some types of cell death and also to develop probes of mitochondrial function. Here we outline some of the background to the development of these compounds.