There is both human DNA and "foreign" DNA in mitochondria. The theory is that they are ancient microscopic creatures that evolved to have a symbiotic relationship with eukaryotic cells, and eventually became a part of them. But they still retain some of their own DNA as well as having human DNA in them.
@CardinalSin: But every cell in the human body has identical DNA (inherited from both parents), while mitochondria also have a separate set of DNA, which is inherited only from your mother.
No, your mother got her mitochondria from her mother and hers from her mother all the way until that one cell improperly swallowed another. Mitochondria act like separate beings in your body with their own separate DNA.
I'm yet to find any reliable source for the claim that mitochondrial DNA is "non-human". Indeed, as CardinalSin has said - it's a routine aspect of every human's biology, so I don't even think that "non-human" claim makes any sense.
Otherwise we might as well claim that things like shoulder blades are also "non-human" because they originally arose in pierolapithecus catalaunicus (a pre-cursor to homo sapiens).
How about "mitochondrium" for us non-English folks? Feels unfair to get "mitochondri" right and then not get it because failed on the last letter. Especially when you accept just "nitrous" for nitrous oxide. (Which should probably also be "nitros" in American, because "colour" becomes "color" and so on..)
I agree with that. Some people, like me, knew the whole name. Other may only know the first word, and would still get the point, whereas some who only know the second word wouldn't, despite both knowing only 50% of the answer. How is that fair?
I think its called nitrous colloquially when used as a recreational drug. IMO colloquialisms should be fine, as they are common names used for the substance
"Epi" could also fit as the opposite of "hypo" - hypo meaning deep (hypodermic, hypocenter [of earthquakes]; epi mean surface - (epidermis, epicenter).
I basicly typed everything besides tornadoes, twice, (4 times if you count singular and plural...) storm, hurricane, typhoon, cycloon, (and another one I believe...) And yea I know, they arent all interchangable.
I got "nitrous oxide" from the movie Black Sheep, "Supermassive Black Hole" from the Muse song of the same name, "fusion" from the They Might Be Giants song "Why Does the Sun Shine?" and although I knew the answer anyway, I note that the clue for the Big Bang Theory is a close paraphrasing of the opening line to the theme song of the show of the same name. Education through television!
Otherwise we might as well claim that things like shoulder blades are also "non-human" because they originally arose in pierolapithecus catalaunicus (a pre-cursor to homo sapiens).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitochondrion
That's like asking who wrote Great Expectations and just accepting Charles! haha
Yes!