Genes Jump Make Any Person Unique

Genes jump , called transposons , on the human body to make each person unique , and the researchers in the United States found that the number of transposons in the human body more than the estimate of people .

The researchers also found a very high number of transposons in lung tumors .

" We found that if you have a child , that child can have one or more copies of a new transposon that you do not have, " said Scott Devine of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, as quoted by reuters .

" From the findings, we predict there is more variation in the human genome than the first time scientists believed to be on . " said Devine , who led the research while at Emory University in Atlanta .

The discovery that can help trigger a revolution that is expected of scientists will lead to drugs and other therapies to treat and prevent disease.

Transposons are elements in the DNA code that can replicate themselves. Genes that jump from one place to another on the chromosome . Tim Devine found a unique transposon in more than 90 percent of the 76 people they study.

The results were published in the journal Cell.

Mutations that may affect the function of other genes . DNA leap right in front of or behind a gene can turn on or off , or influence the way he worked .

That people have the transposon is not new . "Fifty -five percent of the genome of the strain known as transposons , "said Devine .

But most of the jump in or not active now , have not changed and remains in place from one generation to the next .

" What makes us interested is one gene that move around today. We found an average of 15 insertions per person , "said Devine .

Cheap Technology

The new technology enables a genetic string to find this transposon . cost thousands of dollars needed to map an individual 's genome , the entire genetic element , but some companies like Illumina , Life Technologies, and Roche is trying to reduce prices .

Tim Devine uses Roche's production of couplings 454 to find the 1145 new transposon insertions that have not been documented.

They developed a genetic research will target only the active genes and predicted jump sebuas new insertions occur in every generation .

human genome has three billion base pairs - the genetic code A, C , T and G. " This can affect every base pair anywhere on the planet, "said Devine .

Each person has 20,000 genes on the same basis , but each gene is composed of many base pairs and a number of changes that are not obvious to everyone. DNA outside genes affect the body in ways only beginning to be understood.

Transposon jumps into a non - code region , but sometimes also into the gene .

" If you think the human genome as a manual way to build a complex machine like an airplane , imagine what would happen if you copy a page that describes a seat and put it into sections that describe the jet engines , "said Devine .

As they studied the brain tumor and lung cancer , Devine's team discovered a transposon that looks very busy on lung cancer , but not in brain cancer .