Objective To develop a simple, rapid and reliable real-time PCR assay based on TaqMan technology using a new MCB probe for detecting mtDNA LHON G11778A mutation and heteroplasmy directly. Methods Twenty patients with suspicion of Leber hereditary optic neuropathy ( LHON) and their maternal relatives had undergone molecular genetic evaluation. Seventeen normal individuals were used as the controls. A real-time PCR involved two MCB probes (wild-type and mutation-type) in a single tube on the iCycler IQ real-t...