Mitochondrial dysfunction plays important roles in many diseases, but there is no satisfactory
method to assess mitochondrial health in vivo. Here, we engineered a MitoTimer reporter
gene from the existing Timer reporter gene. MitoTimer encodes a mitochondria-targeted
green fluorescent protein when newly synthesized, which shifts irreversibly to red
fluorescence when oxidized. Confocal microscopy confirmed targeting of the MitoTimer
protein to mitochondria in cultured cells, Caenorhabditis elegans touch receptor neurons …