Also see:
Fat Deficient Animals – Activity of Cytochrome Oxidase
Blue Light, Cytochrome Oxidase, and Eye Injury
Cytochrome oxidase is one of the enzymes damaged by stress and by blue light, and activated or restored by red light, thyroid, and progesterone. -Ray Peat, PhD
A crucial enzyme in the mitochondrion is cytochrome oxidase, which reacts directly with oxygen, completing (or beginning) the process of chemical respiration. It is this enzyme (which is most sensitive to cyanide) which appears to be a “choke point” for energy production in various situations. Learning how to preserve and promote the activity of this enzyme is an important issue for everything having to do with biological energy. -Ray Peat, PhD
FEBS Lett. 1998 Sep 11;435(1):25-8.
Glucocorticoids decrease cytochrome c oxidase activity of isolated rat kidney mitochondria.
Simon N, Jolliet P, Morin C, Zini R, Urien S, Tillement JP.
The importance of mitochondria is rising as a target in pathologic processes such as ischemia. We have investigated the effects of hydrocortisone, prednisolone, dexamethasone and triamcinolone on oxidative phosphorylation, Ca2+ fluxes, swelling and membrane potentials in isolated kidney mitochondria. The measurement of respiration state 3 showed a significant decrease in presence of glucocorticoids whereas the other respiration states were not modified. When mitochondria were uncoupled and either the complexes III and IV or the complex IV were stimulated, the O2 consumption was decreased by glucocorticoids. These results suggest the cytochrome c oxidase is a target of the glucocorticoid effect on the respiratory chain. Indeed, the other mitochondrial functions investigated were unchanged, ruling out a direct effect on Ca2+ fluxes or swelling. A regulation of cytochrome c oxidase activity by glucocorticoids will be of particular interest in pathology involving metabolic insult.
