- Mitochondrial DNA is passed only through the mother. It has easily identifiable DNA, since the genome only has 16,000 units compared to the 3 million units of nuclear DNA.
- Sequencing mitochondrial DNA is a lot less expensive than nuclear DNA and can also be found in much smaller samples of blood.
- In over 80% of cancer cases, the patients have mutations in their mitochondrial DNA. Doctors believe that if they can find the mutations they could get a sense of where they begin and when they end.
- These reformed portions of DNA possibly could monitor the success of a cancer treatment to see whether or not the cancer is completely gone.
Reflection:
This was an eye-opening article because if scientists were able to quickly read through a cell’s DNA, it would be easier for them to read and monitor cancer treatments on a cellular level.
I was able to understand this article since we studied the concept of DNA and since I was aware of how expensive and difficult decoding a genome is, as well as the benefits and risks of such a project.
Also, I was able to understand this article since I knew the different parts of the cell, such as mitochondria.
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