Biology / Unit 7 Bio 1591 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Mitochondrial Genomics
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The idea
Mitochondrial genomics studies mitochondrial DNA, which mutates rapidly and passes from mother to offspring, making it useful for tracing genealogy and evolution.
In practice
A child inherits mitochondrial DNA only from the mother, so tracing that sequence across generations reconstructs a maternal-line genealogy.
Where people slip
Mitochondrial DNA's maternal inheritance makes it useful for tracing lineage — it does not track paternal-line ancestry as nuclear markers can.
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