Age-Related and Heteroplasmy-Related Variation in Human mtDNA Copy Number.

ABSTRACT: The mitochondrial (mt) genome is present in many copies in human cells, and intra-individual variation in mtDNA sequences is known as heteroplasmy. Recent studies found that heteroplasmies are highly tissue-specific, site-specific, and allele-specific, however the functional implications have not been explored. This study investigates variation in mtDNA copy numbers (mtCN) in 12 different tissues obtained at autopsy from 152 individuals (ranging in age from 3 days to 96 years). Three different methods to estimate mtCN were compared: shotgun sequencing (in 4 tissues), capture-enriched sequencing (in 12 tissues) and droplet digital PCR (ddPCR, in 2 tissues). The highest precision in mtCN estimation was achieved using shotgun sequencing data. However, capture-enrichment data provide reliable

SUBMITTER: Wachsmuth M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4792396 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature