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Lizzie said:
Scientists have discovered that DNA has a third strand. In other words human DNA is a triple helix. What evidence do we have that this is true? Will that enhance human intelligence?
What is junk DNA? What is its evolutionary value? Could it serve as mechanism that might trigger rapid genetic changes?
It is really possible to create a light body? What would this mean for human society if we could “transcend” physical death?
Divinity said:
Are humans really bioholographic super computers?
What scientific evidence do we have that confirm this?
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Triple Strand DNA:
Stable Triple-Stranded DNA Formation and its Application to the SNP Detection
http://dnaresearch.oxfordjournals.org/c ... l/12/6/441
Triple Helix DNATriple-stranded DNA has been generating increased interest not only because of its unique structural characteristics and possible biological significance but also because of its potential utility as a tool for DNA analysis.1 –3 There have been several studies reporting the use of triple-stranded DNA as a tool to cleave specific sites in DNA molecules, to knock out specific genes and to correct mutations.4 –15 Triple-stranded DNA structure particularly with short deoxyoligonucleotides has generally been considered unstable after removal of the protein.
http://current.com/items/89038749_triple_helix_dna
Other Forms of DNAIn much recent literature on the subject, the transfigured body Kelleher envisions has been called the lightbody. Mounting evidence clearly shows that the lightbody is not merely an esoteric fantasy but, at the very least, a bio-spiritual possibility.
http://mol-biol4masters.org/Deoxy_Ribon ... _Forms.htm
Three strands of DNA, which are complementary to each other, have propensity for triple helix formation. Homo or hetero polypurine or polypyrimidine tracts can assume triple strand conformation. Such triple stranded structures have been demonstrated and many diseases have been attributed to them. Triplex strands can affect transcription, replication and gene expression and they even prevent specific protein binding. Triplex DNA structures can be either intermolecular or intramolecular forms.
Stability of Three-Stranded DNA Structure
http://www.biomath.nyu.edu/~yanglj/pre-research.html
UCSD Study Shows 'Junk' DNA Has Evolutionary ImportanceIn last ten more years, studies of triplex DNA have been paid much more attention because of its importance as a tool for DNA sequencing, gene control and therapeutic applications. The site-specific character of triplex formation offers viable biochemical, pharmacological and therapeutic applications by acting as repressors at the transcriptional (antigene) level, which also provides means to design powerful artificial endonuclease when the third strand is coupled with a cleaving agent. The triplex forming activity also holds strong promise in the areas of genome mapping.
http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/science/mcjunk.asp
“Junk DNA” Creates Novel ProteinsThis pattern most likely reflects resistance to the incorporation of new mutations,” he says. “In fact, 40 to 70 percent of new mutations that arise in non-coding DNA fail to be incorporated by this species, which suggests that these non-protein-coding regions are not ‘junk,’ but are somehow functionally important to the organism.”
http://www.genomenewsnetwork.org/articl ... junk.shtml
Probing Question: What Is Junk DNA, And What Is It Worth?DNA sequences long considered genomic garbage are finally getting a little respect. Researchers have figured out how short stretches of DNA that do not normally code for proteins worm their way into genes.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/20 ... 093900.htm
TransposonsIn particular, Makalowski, associate professor of biology and head of the Computational Evolutionary Genomics Lab at Penn State, studies DNA sequences called transposons, which make up more than a third of all of the "non-coding" DNA in every cell of our bodies. Transposons, as Makalowski describes them, are like "little autonomous entities that live in the genome."
With their special DNA codes, they can "make offspring and move around," that is, they can induce the cell to make a copy of their sequence and then reinsert that copy into another part of the genome. If the new copy happens to land in the middle of a coding sequence, however, it can cause a fatal mutation. For this reason, some scientists have considered transposons genetic parasites that breed at the expense of the genome they live in.
What good comes from transposons? Basically, the genetic machinery that gives transposons the ability to copy and paste themselves throughout the genome can be useful if it lands in the right place, Makalowski explains.
Perhaps a more important function of transposons comes from their ability to change the way DNA code is edited before the information is used to build a useful protein. DNA in the cell’s nucleus is first copied and then exported to the protein manufacturing centers. However, this rough draft of the genetic plan is full of junk code that special molecules — like little editors — have to trim out, leaving only the sections of code that are actually used for building the final molecule. These little editors can bind to the special bit of code between the useful and junk DNA, called "splicing sites," and cut the strand. When certain transposons jump into the mix, however, they can introduce new cutting sites and interfere with old ones. By this means, new pieces of DNA get into the final draft of the code, and new variations of proteins are manufactured. Even a tiny change can have a huge impact (for good or ill) on a protein’s properties.
The more often these inserts happen, the more likely a beneficial change will occur. The more beneficial changes in a creature's DNA, the more likely that creature will be able to adapt to a changing environment. Thus, Makalowski argues that transposons are worth the risks. Over the long term, he suggests, they may have helped us become the people we are today — and they'll certainly help us again in the future.
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultran ... osons.html
Retrotransposons
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultran ... ransposons