Instead of relying on cellular mechanisms of destroying non oxphos
mitochondria why don't we destroy them directly by attacking them with
"mitochondrial antibiotics".
Antibiotics have many mechanisms of action. Some cause selective
destruction of the bacterial membrane others selectively inhibit
bacterial protein synthesis. As mitochondria are descended from bacteria
it probably wouldn't be difficult to design a compound selective for
mitochondria with one of these mechanisms of action.
To make the compound selective for damaged mitochondria it should
probably have a region which is cleaved or otherwise inactivated by one
of the oxphos enzymes. I don't know how practical this would be. It
would be best for the compound to destroy the mitochondia from within
e.g. inhibit protein synthesis as we don't want to wipe out all of the
mitochondria in the body.
Just an idea...
Magnus
