When was the term "mitochondrion" coined?

Answer 1

No one person can be said to have been the first to discover the mitochondrion. Between 1850 and 1890, there were many biologists using newly developed microscopes to observe cellular bodies... the name coined for mitochondria might be what one might expect from people just describing what they see. It literally means 'thread granule', and that's what it looks like - a granule that's filled with threads.

Though Kolliker was the first to isolate mitochondria, he was not the person who named them. Instead, it was Benda in 1898 who has that honor of coining that exact term. See link below for evidence.

At first, it was thought that mitochondria might be the location of genetic material, and it was not for another fifty years that the understanding of the mitochondria's true purpose came to light. It wasn't until the 1970's that it was discovered that mitochondria share more in common with bacteria than their hosts. Who knows what we'll find out in another fifty years!

Answer 2

Mitochondrion (from the Greek meaning thread + grain) were discovered in 1857 by Kolliker. But it is only in 1949 that they are shown to be organelles responsible for oxidative phosphorylation (production of energy).