Tired All the Time? What Mitochondrial Health Reveals About Chronic Fatigue and Aging: A Conversation with Dr. Clint Carter and Sundeep Dugar, PhD
In a recent episode of the myMD Unscripted podcast, Dr. Clint Carter sat down with Sundeep Dugar, PhD, co-founder at BlueOakNx, who has over 38 years of experience in small-molecule drug discovery and development in oncology, inflammation, the central nervous system, cardiovascular, and metabolic disorders. He is co-inventor of the best-selling drugs Zetia® (ezetimibe) and Vytorin® (ezetimibe/simvastatin). Sundeep was American Chemical Society’s 2005 National Inventor of the Year and received the 2004 Heroes of Chemistry Award.
In this wide-ranging discussion about mitochondria, Sundeep pointed to his systemic view of how healthspan must move beyond the one-symptom, one-diagnosis, one-treatment approach. “The familiar line that mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell is not untrue, just incomplete,” he said. Mitochondria have ancient bacterial origins, a relationship first described by biologist Lynn Margulis. Taking mitochondria’s energy-production a step further became the focus of Robert Naviaux, MD, PhD, University of California San Diego, who published the added role of mitochondria as sentinels, constantly sensing stress and environmental signals that direct the cellular response by deciding what to repair, clear out, and rebuild.
One of the highlights of the conversation was about recovery. A young, healthy cell can sense a stressor, mount an inflammatory response, heal, and bounce back to baseline. That capacity to recover fades over time; as much as 10 percent per decade past age 21. Each stress response pulls energy toward defense, leaving less for repair or maintenance. Over the years of accumulated insults, the body’s recovery plateau settles lower and lower. This is why a 21-year-old can shake off a brutal workout overnight while a 51-year-old needs several days.
Sundeep explained that mitochondria touch everything from immune function, to mood, to aging itself. And, the underlying biology is deeply interconnected. Watch the full episode here for a broader view of the relevance of mitochondria to healthspan.
Read / Watch Next
- Join mitochondria experts in the Second Annual Symposium on Mitochondrial Health Healthspan: Brain Metabolism and Bioenergetics
- Watch a presentation on Mitochondria and Salugenesis: Robert Naviaux, MD, PhD, UCSD
- Watch the Improving Mitochondria Function: From Neurodegeneration to Oncology, with Sundeep Dugar, PhD, UC Davis