Table 4.

Summary of how the ketogenic diet may benefit mitochondrial function

Mechanism	Model	Condition modelled	Reference
Reduces deleted mDNA	Cultured human cells	KSS	[119]
Induced mitochondrial biogenesis	Deletor mouse	PEO	[120]
Restored complex I assembly, increasing ATP synthesis	Embryonic stem cells	MELAS	[121]
Subacute selective ragged‐red‐fibre lysis	Cultured human cells	PMM	[122]

ATP adenosine triphosphate, KSS Kearns-Sayre syndrome, mDNA mitochondrial deoxyribonucleic acid, MELAS mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes, PEO progressive external ophthalmoplegia, PMM primary mitochondrial myopathies