# PINK1

PINK1 (PTEN-induced kinase 1) is a kinase that sits in your mitochondria and acts as a damage sensor. In a healthy mitochondrion, with an intact membrane voltage, PINK1 is pulled into the inner membrane, quickly cut by an enzyme called PARL, and broken down. But when the membrane voltage collapses, that import fails. PINK1 then piles up on the outer membrane, where it pairs up and self-activates. Active PINK1 tags ubiquitin and the enzyme Parkin, both at a conserved Ser65 spot. That recruits and switches on Parkin, which then tags outer-membrane proteins for removal and triggers the selective cleanup of the damaged mitochondrion (mitophagy). Loss-of-function mutations in PINK1 cause an inherited, early-onset form of Parkinson's disease. And weak PINK1-Parkin signaling is implicated in the mitochondrial decline of aging.

## Sources

- Vives-Bauza C, Zhou C, Karthikeyan S, et al.. (2010). PINK1-dependent recruitment of Parkin to mitochondria in mitophagy. PNAS. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0911187107
- Pickrell AM, Youle RJ. (2015). The Roles of PINK1, Parkin, and Mitochondrial Fidelity in Parkinson's Disease. Neuron. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2014.12.007

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_Canonical: https://longevity-switzerland.com/en/glossary/pink1 · Part of Longevity Cities · Updated 2026-06-22_