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How is mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) different from nuclear DNA?
Posted February 4, 2020
Answer
mtDNA is the mitochondrial DNA that differs from nuclear DNA in a number of characteristics (Table 1).
Table 1. Differences between mtDNA and nuclear DNA.
| Feature | mtDNA | nuclear DNA |
| Abundance | Mitochondrial matrix | Nucleus of cell |
| Shape | Circular chain of DNA | Arranged in linear chromosomes |
| Base number | 16,569 | 3,300,000,000 |
| Number of copies | Multiple | Two |
| Number of genes | 37 | 20,000 ? 30,000 |
| Inheritance | Maternal | Maternal and paternal |
| Non-coding DNA genome proportion | 3% | 93% |