Discovery of mitochondria

Mitochondria are a double membranous organelle found in the cytoplasm of all eukaryotic cells. It contains the outer membrane and the inner membrane which is made up of proteins and phospholipids.

The earliest records on intracellular structures that probably represent mitochondria go back to the 1840s, only a few years after the discovery of the cell nucleus.

Mitochondria, often referred to as the “powerhouses of the cell”, were first discovered in 1857 by physiologist Albert von Kolliker. He was studying human muscle cells when he noted strange granules in them.

In 1886 Richard Altman, a cytologist, identified the organelles by dye technique, and dubbed them as "bioblasts". He postulated that these structures were the basic units of cellular activity.

The organelles were then renamed “mitochondria” by Carl Benda twelve years later and the name and originates from the Greek "mitos" (thread) and "chondros" (granule), referring to the appearance of these structures during spermatogenesis .
Discovery of mitochondria