What is DNA? 5 facts you should know

DNA is the basic molecule of the human body, carrier of genetic information and is responsible for characteristics which make each person unique and different from the rest. Since its discovery in 1953, DNA has been the focus of many studies that have attempted to reveal the complete sequence of the material it contains, trying to figure out which part of the molecule corresponds to each human personality, and focusing on the development of personalized medicine.

Peaceful invasion: the arrival of the Velero jellyfish on the beaches of Spain

Although DNA is a truly important part of life, there are some aspects that are still little known. From the amazing similarities shared by humans to the sheer length of the nucleotide chain, DNA is full of curiosities that make you wonder and ponder the complexity, yet diversity and beauty of life.

WE PEOPLE SHARE 99.9% OF OUR DNA

Yes, although at first glance this seems like a crazy number, all people we share virtually 99.9% of our DNA

. In fact, this amazing genetic similarity is the basis of our species, and only the remaining 0.1% is responsible for the individual variations that make us unique creatures. However environmental influence This is also an element to consider: environmental factors such as diet, lifestyle and other habits can have a significant impact on our biology, even though we share so many genes.

And it doesn’t end there: although we look very different from chimpanzees, with whom we share 98% of our DNA, our connection to the plant kingdom is also surprisingly close: the share we share with cabbage is equal to from 40% to 50%all thanks to the evolutionary continuity that unites all forms of life on our planet.

LARGE GENOME VOLUME

Have you ever thought about how huge a genome can be? In the case of a woman with 46 type XX chromosomes, her genome has approximately 12,859,525,002 nucleotides. But in the case of a man with 46 chromosomes and an XY karyotype, this figure is somewhat smaller, but equally colossal: 12,661,898,042 nucleotides

. That is, if each of these nucleotides were represented by a letter in a textbook, the human genome would occupy about 8.5 million pages: something like a library of more than 8,500 books!

The technique that allowed Rosalind Franklin to decipher DNA

But this vast array of genetic information is not just a random accumulation of data: DNA contains 20,000 to 25,000 genes that encode the basic instructions for human development, function and reproduction. It should be noted that it is this enormous amount of genetic information that reflects the complexity and diversity that so characterize our species.

NEANDERTHAL HERITAGE IN DNA

Human beings carry in their DNA something like the book of our history. And in the genetic material of the cell nucleus we can find evidence of our evolutionary past: 1% to 4% will be shared with Neanderthals.view, close but different from Homo sapiens extinct hundreds of thousands of years ago. This discovery shows that at some point in history, homo sapiens and Neanderthals lived in the same territory and shared a common ancestor, leaving behind genetic fingerprint it persists in our species.

Recent research has delved deeper into the role of these genes in our biology, highlighting that they even have certain importance for our immune system and other aspects of our biology.. Specifically, the study, conducted at Cornell University, used genetic data from the United Kingdom Biobank, which identified up to 235,000 genetic variants of possible Neanderthal origin. Of these, nearly 4,300 appear to be related to human characteristics related to metabolism, development, or the immune system.

1.2 million year old mammoth DNA discovered

DNA of JAPANESE PARIS

Did you know that there is a flower whose genome 50 times more than a human? This is Paris japonica, a species of white plant native to Japan with a genome of nearly 150 million base pairs. However, in the world of genetics, size is not always an advantage: while this impressive size may indicate greater genetic complexity, all indications are that it may actually represent evolutionary disadvantage for the sake of appearance.

This problem may arise from the practical implications of having such a large genome. The older he is, the more complex and lengthy the process of cell reproduction becomes, truly the most important aspect of the reproduction, growth and development of organisms. This difficulty can lead to lower reproductive efficiency and, as a consequence, reducing the likelihood of survival of the species.

VIRAL HERITAGE OF THE GENOME

Thus, there is no doubt that DNA is the true record of evolutionary history. In fact, everything indicates that approximately one 8% of our genome consists of DNA belonging to retroviruses., a class of viruses that have managed to integrate into our genetic material and persist through different generations. These once-contagious retroviruses have mutated over the years, becoming yet another part of our genetic heritage.

In other words, the presence of these viruses in our genome is the result old infections this affected the cells, allowing this viral genetic material to integrate into our own DNA. As these cells replicated and were passed on from generation to generation, the viral DNA was inherited along with the rest of the genome, becoming another part within us.