HOUSTONâJustin Friendâs parents have doctoral degrees and have worked as university lecturers and researchers. So Mr. Friend might have been expected to head for a university after graduating from high school in Bryan, Texas, five years ago. Instead, he attended Texas State Technical College in Waco, and received a two-year degree in welding.
A flurry of emergent research has linked mitochondrial dysfunction to the pathogenesis of Parkinson's disease. Mitochondrial dysfunction results in impaired ATP generation, loss of cellular repair mechanisms, and cellular inefficiency.
Overview of Mitochondrial Disease. Mitochondrial disease or dysfunction is an energy production problem. Almost all cells in the body have mitochondria, which are tiny âpower plantsâ that produce a bodyâs essential energy.Mitochondrial disease means the power plants in cells donât function properly.When that happens, some functions in the body donât work normally. Itâs as if the body has a power failure: there is a gradation of effects, like a âbrown outâ or a âblack outâ. Scientifically, it is actually a category or group of diseases.ost importantly, when a diagnosis of mitochondrial disease or disorder is considered, patients need to be evaluated carefully for diseases other than mitochondrial disease. For example, the muscle biopsy can be used to look at other types of muscle diseases.