Saved by junk DNA
VIB researchers linked to K.U.Leuven and Harvard University have demonstrated that stretches of DNA, previously believed to be useless ‘junk’ DNA, play a vital role in the evolution of our genome. They found that unstable pieces of junk DNA help to tune gene activity and enable organisms to adapt quickly to changes in their environments. The researchers conducted a complex experiment aimed at mimicking biological evolution, using yeast cells as Darwinian guinea pigs. They found that only cells with ‘repeats’ – short stretches of DNA that are repeated head-to-tail – would be able to adapt swiftly to changes, thereby beating their repeat-less counterparts in the game of evolution.
