High levels of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) heteroplasmy, a mixture of normal and mutated mtDNA molecules in a cell, lead to inherited mitochondrial diseases

High levels of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) heteroplasmy, a mixture of normal and mutated mtDNA molecules in a cell, lead to inherited mitochondrial diseases with neurological, sensory, and movement impairments. We measured mtDNA heteroplasmy at twenty disease-causing sites for associations with neurosensory and mobility function among elderly participants from a community-based study of aging.