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.

[Doctor Stochastic]

Sean did get the Oscar though.

[js1138]

No, I'm Number Two!

[Boiler Plate]

Vade,
Am I now supposed to check with you before I reply to your post? Sheez get real. You claim to not know who Oggy is, fine let him answer the question.
Best Regards,
Boiler Plate

[VadeRetro]

Oh, HIM. I liked his associate, Alotta what-'er-name.

[RightWingNilla]

I'm remembering Danny DeVito, but I'll admit the memory looks ridiculous.

LOL. Now that would be funny.

[RightWingNilla]

You claim to not know who Oggy is, fine let him answer the question.

Oggy?

[js1138]

Oh, Scientology.

[VadeRetro]

Actually, I think the real Capone looked a lot more like DeVito anyway.

[RightWingNilla]

You bet! This stuff is deep.

Every creature living there speak a strange language called mind-link - a language made up of feelings, a language spoken and heard in the minds of all creatures in the Oggy World.

[RightWingNilla]

Actually, I think the real Capone looked a lot more like DeVito anyway.

He was an ugly mo-fo.

[Boiler Plate]

I think you have ened all the debates.

[balrog666]

Who is Number One?

[f.Christian]

America - fr on evolution !

[<1/1,000,000th%]

That looks like a DNC fund raising event.

[RightWingNilla]

I think you have ened all the debates.

Good stuff right? ;^)

In all seriousness, Google "Ogmios" - is some kind of mythical Celtic god. I dont remember Aric ever being interested in such things. Also Ogmios' style is quite reserved and different from Aric's. Maybe we should all move along.

[RightWingNilla]

Whhoooa, It looks like a Roger Water's nightmare.

[PatrickHenry]

This is your brain on creationism ...

[f.Christian]

FR posters for the american way ... aclu --- " evolution only " - " total " !

[Doctor Stochastic]

To get back to the subject: There's high interest in junk DNA.

[PatrickHenry]

Yes. Michael Milken got the Nobel Prize for his work in junk DNA.