Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026

Isolation of Mitochondria for Mitochondrial Supercomplex Analysis from Small Tissue and Cell Culture Samples
Published on: May 3, 2024
Are mitochondrial haplogroups associated with elite athletic status? A study on a Spanish cohort
Gisela Nogales-Gadea1, Tomàs Pinós, Jonatan R Ruiz
1Departament de Patología Mitocondrial i Neuromuscular, Institut de Recerca Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain.
Abstract:
There is increasing evidence regarding the association between mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and aerobic capacity; however, whether mtDNA haplogroups are associated with the status of being an elite endurance athlete is more controversial. We compared the frequency distribution of mtDNA haplogroups among the following groups of Spanish (Caucasian) men: 102 elite endurance athletes (professional road cyclists, endurance runners), 51 elite power athletes (jumpers, throwers and sprinters), and 478 non-athletic controls. We observed a significant difference between endurance athletes and controls (Fisher exact test=17.89, P=0.015; Bonferroni's significant threshold=0.017), yet not between power athletes and controls (Fisher exact test=47.99, P=0.381) or between endurance and power athletes (Fisher exact test=5.53, P=0.597). We observed that the V haplogroup was overrepresented in endurance athletes (15.7%) compared with controls (7.5%) (odds ratio: 2.284; 95% confidence interval: 1.237, 4.322). In conclusion, our findings overall support the idea that mtDNA variations could be among the numerous contributors to the status of being an elite endurance athlete, whereas no association was found with elite power athletic status.
Related Concept Videos
Animal Mitochondrial Genetics
Energy to Drive Translocation
Generally, polypeptides are unfolded by two distinct...
Mitochondrial Membranes
Mitochondria
Export of Mitochondrial and Chloroplast Genes
