We report a new case of Leigh disease (subacute necrotizing encephalomyelopathy) in a girl with mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutation in the ATPase6 gene at nucleotide position 8993. Sequence analysis of mtDNA revealed a T-to-G transversion at nucleotide position 8993 in the ATPase6 gene. Southern blot restriction analysis of patient muscle mtDNA showed only a mutant pattern for the mutation 8993. Molecular analysis of seven subjects from the family showed that except for the father they all carried the 8993 mtDNA mutation in all studied tissues, with high percentages in the two symptomatic children and even in one asymptomatic boy.