Mitochondria in acute myocardial infarction and cardioprotection

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and the heart failure (HF) that often follows are among the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. As such, new treatments are needed to protect the myocardium against the damaging effects of the acute ischaemia and reperfusion injury (IRI) that occurs in AMI, in order to reduce myocardial infarct (MI) size, preserve cardiac function, and improve patient outcomes. In this regard, cardiac mitochondria play a dual role as arbiters of cell survival and death following AMI. Therefore, preventing mitochondrial dysfunction induced by acute myocardial IRI is an important therapeutic strategy for cardioprotection. In this article, we review the role of mitochondria as key determinants of acute myocardial IRI, and we highlight their roles as therapeutic targets for reducing MI size and preventing HF following AMI. In addition, we discuss the challenges in translating mitoprotective strategies into the clinical setting for improving outcomes in AMI patients.