Mitochondria produce metabolites like acetyl-CoA, citrate, lactate, and alpha-ketoglutarate that reflect the energetic state of the mitochondria and carry this signature to the nucleus, influencing gene expression.

“at the level of the cell and their metabolites that are mitochondria are producing based on the energetic state of the mitochondria. there will be more you know acetyl coa and citrate and uh lactate and alpha ketoglutarate and those are all you know molecular uh imprints of an energetic state and then those molecules carry this energetic signature that's in the mitochondria to the nucleus and then boom they get written down as the epiggenome”