What are the Mitochondria?
Mitochondria are the cellular organelles that are responsible for manufacturing ATP. They can be likened to a power plant that burns sugar using oxygen (oxidative phosphorylation). The mitochondria posess their own DNA, and for this reason are believed to a relative of ancient bacteria that evolutionarily merged with the cellular unit during endosymbiosis. Under certain conditions where the cell cannot intake oxygen properly, the mitochondria can dissolve their symbiosis with the human host, and no longer function in harmony with the cell. This is called mitochondrial dysbiosis, and is a serious indicator for risk of cancer, as the cells revert to ancient survival mechanisms in which they use fermentation to make ATP, rather than oxidative phosphorylation.
