150,000 quadruplex DNA sequence motifs found to be ‘non-randomly’ distributed throughout the genetic material of maize:
Excerpt: A team led by Florida State University researchers has identified DNA elements in maize that could affect the expression of hundreds or thousands of genes.
“Maybe they are part of the machinery that allows an organism to turn hundreds of genes off or on,”
Bass and Carson Andorf… began this exploration of the maize genome sequence along with colleagues from FSU, Iowa State and the University of Florida. They wanted to know if certain DNA structures such as the four-strand G-quadruplex (G4) DNA might exist throughout the genetic material of maize.
G4 structures are present in genes that regulate cancer and cell division in humans, making it an important focus in scientific research. But, not much is known about them.
The general public thinks of DNA as two connected strands known as the double helix. But scientists also discovered over the years that those strands regularly separate so they can replicate the genetic material. That material can also twist into different shapes such as a G-quadruplex.
Bass and his colleagues found 150,000 sequence motifs that could theoretically adopt the G4 DNA structure, and they were distributed all over the chromosomes. Further examination showed that they were present in very specific places, as opposed to a random distribution.More.
Jus’ an accident, right? Here’s Evolution News & Views’s view.
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Hat tip: Philip Cunningham