What is Mitochondrial DNA?

Mitochondrial DNA is a unique type of DNA found in the mitochondria in the cells. Mitochondria are considered as the energy factories of the cell and play an important role in cellular respiration. Most of the DNA is found within the nucleus but some are found in this organelle as the mitochondrial DNA. Recently, scientists have developed a way of predicting which Covid cases could evolve into a more severe form by using a rapid blood test for mitochondrial DNA. If these are found in the bloodstream, it indicates that the cell has undergone a violent cell death.