Research in my laboratory seeks to elucidate the role of mitochondria in the pathophysiology of human diseases and to develop innovative mitochondrial-targeted therapies. Using a multidisciplinary approach, we investigate the interactions between subcellular systems and how their disruptions lead to cellular and organ dysfunction. Recently, we developed pioneering mitochondrial optogenetic and luminoptogenetic techniques, enabling dynamic, cell-type-specific control of mitochondria in live animals for the first time. We are leveraging these technologies to manipulate mitochondrial function in live models to understand its contribution to disease (cardiac and cancer) progression.