Medical Definition of Petite mutant
1.
A class of yeast mutants, most studied in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Mutants grow slowly and rely on anaerobic respiration: mitochondria, although present, have reduced cristae and are functionally defective (termed promitochondria). There are three types of petite mutant:
(i) Segregational mutants that show Mendelian behaviour and result from mutations in mitochondrial genes located in the nucleus.
(ii) Neutral petites, which are recessive genotypes and result from the complete absence of mitochondrial DNA.
(iii) Suppressive petites, in which most of the mitchondrial DNA is lost (60-99%), though what remains is often amplified.
(06 Oct 1997)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Petite Mutant
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