molecules Review The Similarities between Human Mitochondria and Bacteria in the Context of Structure, Genome, and Base Excision Repair System Karolina Boguszewska , Michał Szewczuk, Julia Ka´zmierczak-Bara´nska and Bolesław T. Karwowski * DNA Damage Laboratory of Food Science Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Lodz, ul. Muszynskiego 1, 90-151 Lodz, Poland;
[email protected] (K.B.);
[email protected] (M.S.);
[email protected] (J.K.-B.) * Correspondence:
[email protected]; Tel.: +48-42-677-91-36 Academic Editor: Kamelija Zarkovic Received: 19 May 2020; Accepted: 19 June 2020; Published: 21 June 2020 Abstract: Mitochondria emerged from bacterial ancestors during endosymbiosis and are crucial for cellular processes such as energy production and homeostasis, stress responses, cell survival, and more. They are the site of aerobic respiration and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production in eukaryotes. However, oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) is also the source of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are both important and dangerous for the cell. Human mitochondria contain mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), and its integrity may be endangered by the action of ROS. Fortunately, human mitochondria have repair mechanisms that allow protecting mtDNA and repairing lesions that may contribute to the occurrence of mutations. Mutagenesis of the mitochondrial genome may manifest in the form of pathological states such as mitochondrial, neurodegenerative, and/or cardiovascular diseases, premature aging, and cancer. The review describes the mitochondrial structure, genome, and the main mitochondrial repair mechanism (base excision repair (BER)) of oxidative lesions in the context of common features between human mitochondria and bacteria.