Flow Patrol

A study has identified a molecular traffic warden that keeps cellular energy flowing in the right direction. Researchers showed that NEK7M, a protein best known for regulating cell division, also localises to mitochondria, the cell’s energy generators (pictured, NEK7 in green and mitochondria in red in human liver cells). There, it binds directly to a core component of the essential ‘mitochondrial complex II’ and helps maintain the normal forward flow of electrons during energy production. With NEK7 absent, the complex becomes destabilised, triggering reverse electron transport and a surge in reactive oxygen species. These highly reactive molecules can damage cells, and promote fibrosis. The findings shed light on mitochondrial maintenance, and identify NEK7 as a potential target in tackling oxidative stress related conditions such as liver fibrosis.

Written by Anthony Lewis

Anthony Lewis

Writer

Ant was the web editor in the early days of BPoD, and has since worked with the UK’s top science organisations as a writer and multimedia producer. He now splits his time between freelance work and managing multimedia at The Lancet.

Website

• Image from work by Zhenzhen Sun & Le Sun, and colleagues
• Nanjing Key Laboratory of Pediatrics, Children’s Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, P. R. of China
• Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in Nature Communications, November 2025