Analyses of the complete mtDNA sequences from LHON families with m.11778G-->A narrow the association of disease expression to m.12811T-->C (Y159H) in the NADH dehydrogenase 5 gene (MT-ND5) in haplogroup M7b1'2 and suggest that the specific combination of amino acid changes (A20T-T53I) in the ATP synthase 6 protein (MT-ATP6) caused by m.8584G-->A and m.8684C-->T might account for the beneficial background effect of M8a.