Mechanism
Cardiolipin
Reference definition for a mitochondrial-biology node.
Definition
Category: Inner-membrane lipid
Also known as: diphosphatidylglycerol
Cardiolipin is the signature phospholipid of the inner mitochondrial membrane, essential for the organisation and stability of the respiratory-chain supercomplexes and for cristae structure. Defective cardiolipin remodelling causes Barth syndrome (a TAZ/tafazzin disorder). The tetrapeptide elamipretide (SS-31) binds cardiolipin and is intended to stabilise cristae.
Key points
- Elamipretide (SS-31) associates with cardiolipin at the inner membrane, the mechanistic basis for its use in cardiolipin-related disease.
- Cardiolipin defects underlie Barth syndrome, for which elamipretide received an FDA accelerated approval in 2025 — a rare-disease approval, not an aging indication.
- Cardiolipin biology is disease-relevant; it is not evidence that cardiolipin-targeting extends healthy human lifespan.
Related interventions
Sourcing
Standard cardiolipin / Barth-syndrome reviews; Stealth BioTherapeutics elamipretide mechanism disclosures.
Reference synthesis (tier 4); verification: review_level_2026-07-12.