Links between disease and genes in the cell’s energy factory

Mitochondria are tiny structures inside each cell of your body. They make the energy your cells need. These structures have their own set of genes. People have differences in these genes. Some of these differences are inherited as a set called a haplogroup. People with the same ancestry often have the same haplogroups. Europeans have 9 main haplogroups. Africans have 4 main haplogroups. Scientists have found links between haplogroups and many diseases. But most studies have just looked at people with European ancestry. In this project, researchers will try to figure out a patient’s haplogroup from BioVU DNA samples. They will look for the usual European and African haplogroups. Then they will look for traits linked to these haplogroups.