to me, this sounds almost like cloning.
i would be interested in cell fate studies, as the apparatus for making mitochodria is in genomic dna.
i woudln't get too excited about this (my personal opinion)
is there a point where, for whatever reason, the genomic generated mitochondria infrastructure takes over the donor portion, and the disease manifestation is simply delayed?
also of note, no mention is made of methylation differences between the "true" mother and "donor" mother.
the intentions seem ok
they quote
"Similar experiments have been conducted in animals in Japan, and has already led to the birth of healthy mice who had their mitochondria genes corrected."
i would like to see the proof of that, and if the copies in the genomic portion (germ line) are corrected, so that the offspring from them have their genomic portion corrected. if not, this is yet another way to create "ladies in waiting"
now, think about this. essentially, we humans have been selecting against "natural" selection, finding new ways to get around barriers. when, not if, these numbers reach a critical mass, what will this hold for human population?
will it be "discriminatory" to pick one's mate based on modification to one's genome? selection has basically been turned upside down in one respect, similar to the ramp up of c-section births, a certain percentage found to be unnecessary. men, in general, seem to have an affinity for wide hips, i know i do. recently though, this too has been turned upside down as the anemic look is taking over.