Scientists Vie To Break Junk DNA's Secret Code

The Telegraph (UK) ^ | Roger Highfield

[blam]

Scientists vie to break junk DNA's secret code

By Roger Highfield, Science Editor
(Filed: 06/10/2003)

Huge tracts of human DNA, previously written off as meaningless junk, have been found to contain a hitherto unrecognised "genetic grammar", making the language of our genes much more complex than previously thought.

The discovery is of potentially huge significance, since it could lead to an entirely new explanation for certain diseases and symptoms. A race is now on among teams of scientists worldwide to investigate this cryptic code.

While the genetic recipe of a human being is spelt out with three billion letters of DNA code, only about two per cent of these correspond to the genes - the DNA that describes the proteins that build and operate bodies.

In the latest issue of the journal Science, Prof Stylianos Antonarakis of the University of Geneva Medical School, Dr Ewen Kirkness of the Institute of Genomic Research, Maryland, and colleagues have reported compelling evidence that up to three per cent of our genetic material has a crucial role that is not understood.

They made the unexpected discovery that some DNA regions of humans, dogs and species as distant as elephant and wallaby are nearly identical. These regions of what were once called junk have been dubbed "conserved non-genic sequences", or CNGs, a reference to how they are not conventional genes.

Prof Antonarakis said: "I suspect that mutations in CNGs may contribute to numerous genetic disorders." Defects in CNGs could result in illness while the symptoms of Down's syndrome, caused by an extra copy of a chromosome, might be linked to the presence of additional CNGs.

"Many laboratories are now working on identifying pathogenic mutations," he said.

[Boiler Plate]

Ogmios,
Answer the question. Are you the person who used the handle Aric2000 or not? Yes or No.
Truthful Regards,
Boiler Plate

[Ogmios]

Me too, that was very good.

[Boiler Plate]

Answer the question.

[Boiler Plate]

Your buddy Ogmios seems to be having an identity problem.

[DittoJed2]

You are an "agnostic Christian" by your own admission. Exactly the same as Aric.

[js1138]

I find it interesting to witness "conservatives" engaging in textual deconstruction. Perhaps we are witnessing the birth of a hybrid species, a melding of French rationalism with Christian fundamentalism. Foucault's pandemonium.

[Boiler Plate]

We are still waiting on your answer.

[DittoJed2]

Is that the Jeopardy music I hear?

[js1138]

By the way, what dies the "2" in your screen name signify.

[DittoJed2]

I first came on Free Republic in 1998 as Dittojed. That screename is active, but haven't used it in years.

[Boiler Plate]

Why I believe it is. Guess what? His time is up!

[Boiler Plate]

Yoohoo, Oggy answer the question, yes or no?

[js1138]

So you essentially have two screen names active at the same time?

[DittoJed2]

They haven't deleted the other screen name. I don't use it, nor have I in years.

[DittoJed2]

It wouldn't matter if they did. I think a while back I alerted them to that, but they never deleted it. You can see when I started using this name. It had been a while since I had last used the previous screename and I think I changed email addresses or something like that and forgot my password.

[balrog666]

Balrog001-666 placemarker.

[Junior]

It is interesting, in that the very techniques they are using are the ones they decry when applied to Biblical texts...

[DittoJed2]

I don't decry methodologies when applied to biblical texts. I decry conclusions from those methodologies.

[Junior]

And your conclusions in regards to your deconstruction of a certain other poster are more valid how?

[Boiler Plate]

Oggy,
Well in spite of all your self righteous foot stomping about the horrific Holy Warriors and how they

"They lie, they connive, they misrepresent, and basically hurt whatever forum they happen to be on. I, in my moderator persona, warn them, when I find them on my boards, of 4 things: Lying will not be put up with, attacking posters for their religious or scientific convictions or beliefs will again not be tolerated, misrepresenting another posters views will be dealt with most harshly, and stalking a poster will be a banning offense. These are the symptoms of Holy Warrior disease, they are easily recognizable, and quickly seen."

It seems as though it is your deceit that is most easily seen here.

"I wonder what fun and mischief I will find when I get back."

As I have said before you never really knew anything about the subject you are just here to be disrupter hoping that someone else could bail you out when you got over your head.

So go ahead answer the question are you the same person who posted under the name of Aric2000 or not? Yes or no.
Honest Truly Regards,
Boiler Plate