Programmed cell death (PCD) is important for many aspects of plant development. In animals, mitochondria play a central role in PCD; however, a role for mitochondria in PCD in plants is less firmly established. On pages 2215–2232, Christensen et al. show that the gfa2 mutant exhibits defects in synergid cell death at fertilization and that the GFA2 gene encodes a DnaJ protein that localizes to mitochondria. The cover shows the expression of the GUS reporter gene under the control of the GFA2 promoter. The nearly ubiquitous expression pattern of this reporter construct suggests that the GFA2 gene is transcribed throughout the plant. GFA2 protein is closely related to the Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein Mdj1p, which also localizes to mitochondria. Based on the phenotype of the mdj1 mutant in yeast, the gfa2 mutation most likely causes defects in mitochondrial function. These data provide a link between mitochondria and PCD in plants.