Information, Nucleotides

DNA molecule and silent genes

The whole living world consists of cells. Animals, fish, birds, plants, mushrooms, microbes, the people themselves are made up of cells. Outside the cell there is no life. Cells of all living organisms are similar in structure, chemical composition, metabolism, all cells multiply by fission. These are very complex structures, almost whole plants, where tens of thousands of reactions pass for 1 second. Unfortunately, we can not control the personal life of our personal cells. Here they have inviolability, which we are just beginning to overcome. Man in his life is guided by reason, and the cells of which he is composed live by their own rules, which do not always coincide with our desires. But it is very possible that in the near future we will be able to find a common language with them and agree on something important for us and for them.

In the center of the cell is a nucleus, inside of which are Watson-Crick's double-helical spiral unique in structure and function. The entire DNA molecule is divided into small areas called genes. These are elementary units of inherited characteristics that determine our appearance, sex, intellectual potential, life expectancy and, in addition, give us a wide range of genetically determined pathologies, including cancer.

The DNA molecules are densely packed into protein envelopes and form conglomerates, which are called chromosomes. In somatic cells of a person, that is, in the cells of his body, there is a diploid or double set of chromosomes. There are 46 of them or 23 pairs. Each pair contains an absolutely identical set of information. When dividing cells, pairs of chromosomes diverge, and each cell receives a complete set of information. Subsequently, the diploid set of chromosomes is restored. In the human sex cells contains 23 chromosomes, but when fertilization, when the sperm and the egg merge, the double set of chromosomes is restored. At the same time, there is some confusion of male and female information, as a result of which the fetus receives signs and dads and mums.

The totality of all genes contained in a set of chromosomes of germ cells is called the human genome. The complete human genome contains about 80,000 genes. The molecule of DNA is arranged, perhaps, not as difficult as the original. It is represented by two long threads. The filaments consist of nucleotides. Nucleotides are chemical compounds consisting of three substances: a nitrogenous base, a carbohydrate of deoxyribose and phosphoric acid. Without going into details, we can say that the DNA of the entire organic world is formed by only four kinds of nucleotides. These are four letters, four symbols of the alphabet of life: Adenine (A), Timin (T), Guanine (D) and Cytosine (C). They are connected to each other in a polymer chain with a length of hundreds of thousands of nanometers, more than 3 meters. This length of filament allows you to place on it more than 3 billion nucleotides, in the sequence of which, and all the genetic information is coded. These two strands are joined together by hydrogen bonds and spirally twist one around the other, forming a dense structure in which so many secrets are stored. The scientists faced the problem of revealing these secrets, deciphering the human genome, i.e. Isolate all genes and determine their significance. The task seemed inevitable and urgent, and in 1990 the Human Genome Project began.

During the main work, more than 800 genomes of plants and animals were deciphered, including pathogens of many dangerous bacteria: tuberculosis, typhus, stomach ulcers and others. This is of great importance for pharmacology. Appropriate vaccines against the causative agents of these diseases have been developed, a whole group of new drugs has been created to deal with hereditary diseases. These drugs are more effective than those that existed previously, since they have selectivity and directional action on gene and protein targets. A powerful positive impulse was given to molecular medicine in the field of gene diagnosis of diseases and their therapy, and in genetic engineering we have witnessed exceptional events, the most significant of which, perhaps, is cloning. Cloning will save and multiply the brilliant finds of nature, and in the future and man.

Unbelievable prospects opened before the breeders. Based on genetics, transgenic plants allowed a sharp increase in the yield of crops, completely eliminate losses from weeds and pests, and transgenic animals strike our imagination with their productivity, resistance to disease, fertility.

Criminalists also received at their disposal a technology that guarantees absolute certainty in the identification of a person on extremely small quantities of the material under investigation: a droplet of saliva, a piece of hair, dandruff, etc. Thousands of innocent people in the world were acquitted, and the true criminals received a well-deserved punishment based on Gene analysis. There was a reliable mechanism for determining paternity, maternity and the degree of kinship for solving inheritance problems arising in legal practice.

Unexpected and unique results were obtained, which require serious interpretation. So, for example, the results of comparing the human genome with the genome of our closest relative of the chimpanzee showed almost complete their identity by thousands of parameters. In practice, they only slightly exceed the differences between people from different ethnic groups. The man was much closer to the animals than it was possible to assume. Such a high degree of kinship leads researchers into a dead end and requires from them non-standard approaches and solutions. Perhaps, certain adjustments will be made to the theory of the evolution of living matter.

Genetics, including the head of the Human Genome Project, F. Collins, inspired by success, formulated several grandiose predictions for the near future. So by 2020, the market should appear drugs for diabetes, hypertension, cancer and mental illness developed on the basis of genetic engineering, allowing to impact on damaged cells. Gene therapy at the level of germ cells will avoid hereditary diseases. By 2040, it will be possible to archive the individual human genome, and catalog the genes involved in the aging process. This will increase the average life expectancy of a person to 120 years, and in the future give him such a welcome immortality. Finally, a person will have the opportunity to control his own evolution. In these forecasts, everything seems fantastic, but years will pass, perhaps considerably smaller than those that scientists say, everything will become reality, and we will become different.

However, even today the DNA molecule keeps many more secrets and mysteries. Computer analysis of the animal genome made it possible to determine the quantitative ratio of DNA molecule segments performing various functions. Here, geneticists have discovered amazing facts. It turned out that in many species only a small part of the overall sequence of the genome encodes proteins. So in humans only about 2% of the genome encode a protein, 48% of the genome takes part only in the initial stage of coding, and later they are removed from the synthesis of proteins, and more than 50% of the genome consists of non-coding, repeating DNA sequences, Number of fragments of relic viruses. When comparing these data with the genomes of animals standing at different stages of the evolutionary ladder, researchers faced another paradoxical phenomenon. It turned out that in animals that are at a lower stage of evolution, the fraction of non-coding DNA is very small. In percentage terms, it looks like this. So in bacteria, almost all of the DNA is working, it's 90% and only 10% seems to be useless. In yeast, 68% of the DNA is coding, 32% non-coding. In the nematode, this ratio is already 24% and 76%, respectively. The body becomes more complex, and the proportion of coding regions of DNA decreases, while the proportion of information that is incomprehensible to us increases. Here, as it seems at first glance, the opposite result should be expected. F. Krik, considered "extra" DNA a building "garbage", a cost of evolution and a payment for the perfection of the rest of it. The untiring authority of the scientist for many years deprived the deserved dignity of a huge part of the unique molecule. However, recently, a number of scientists who do not recognize authority, have decided to bury the idea of "junk DNA" The close possibility of solving the mystery of non-coding DNA caused a lively discussion among geneticists. Hundreds of articles on this subject have been written, many interesting developments have been proposed. An opinion was expressed about the protective role of non-coding DNA, the formation of a critical mass necessary for triggering some intracellular processes, the formation of cut lines and bonding in alternative splicing. And D. Mattick, for example, believes that non-coding DNA still encodes, so-called, auxiliary ribonucleic acids, RNA.

We came to the problem of the silent part of DNA from the other side. It was suggested that not only hereditary information is recorded and stored in the DNA molecule, but also so-called critical information. Critical information is associated with events that pose a real threat to the existence of the organism. The technology of extracting such information has its own peculiarities, which will be discussed below.

For the study, the usual brewer's yeast of the group of saccharomycetes was chosen. Yeasts are an excellent model object of eukaryotic cells for a wide variety of research in biochemistry, immunology, and genetics. The genetics of yeast developed very rapidly, a great number of works were done both theoretically and applied. Finally, in 1996, the genome of the yeast fungus Saccharomyces cerevisiae was completely sequenced, which was the basis for a breakthrough in the yeast genosystem system. This allowed direct comparison of the sequence of nucleotides in their genomes. That is why yeast has been chosen as an object for our research.

This type of yeast is represented by ordinary eukaryotic, that is, nucleated, cells with a diameter of 3-7 microns. Fungi can withstand very low temperatures and even do not perish when frozen, but only freeze, rolling up all their metabolic processes. They feel best in a warm environment, but at temperatures above 47 degrees their life processes are suspended, and at a temperature of 80 - 100 degrees they die.

Consequently, the critical conditions for the fungus are temperatures close to 80 degrees. Influencing such temperatures on the cells of the fungus Saccharomyces cerevisiae, changes in the sequence of nucleotides in the silent loci of their DNA molecules were observed. More aggressive effects lead to changes in the coding part of DNA and threaten the viability of this small organism.

Thus, information about the unfavorable conditions of life threatening them is recorded in the silent loci of fungal DNA. Moreover, these are the conditions that brought him serious destruction, but at the same time he managed to survive, having saved such a useful experience for himself. Once in such conditions, the fungus already knows about their disastrous consequences and takes all measures to avoid them. The same thing happens with human cells. Our body also consists of cells that have a certain degree of freedom and independence. They also record critical information and also try to use it in situations that threaten their cell life. Critical information in the cells is recorded not as in the brain, it is recorded in sensations. Every sensation, be it visual images associated with people, buildings, the locality where these events, the tragedy that almost led to tragedy, the smell of taste, internal sensations such as pain, sound and, of course, speech are recorded in DNA molecules. The person has survived, the information is recorded and the cells believe that when he finds himself in a similar situation, this information will help him to survive again. DNA molecules are fairly persistent compounds and can store their information for as long as you like. Therefore, the critical events recorded in its structure can be very, very ancient.

For clarity, let's try to give an example. It happened in far Persia. Persia was formed in the VI century BC. E. It was the greatest empire from Egypt to the Indus River. In 332 BC. E. Alexander of Macedon defeated the army of King Darius and captured the rich city of Persipolis. For desperate resistance, he gave the city for 3 days to his soldiers for looting. The townspeople lived in fear. In a magnificent palace, in her room, a young woman prayed passionately and asked the Lord for salvation. The icons were all around and candles were burning. A powerful blow picks up the door with all the constipation and a powerful warrior bursts into the room. A short struggle and a woman, knocked down, rolls unconscious on the floor. It is raped, Greek speech is heard, the house is robbed and leaves. The tortured woman survived and, among other things, fortunately or unhappily, became pregnant. All the sensations of this terrible day: icons, candles, Greek speech, pain, rumbling were recorded in her DNA molecules. The woman was safely removed from the burden and transferred all the information to her child. Traveling in a succession of several dozen generations, this information eventually found itself in the genes of a young man already in our time and, strangely enough, in Russia.

In which case this information can be claimed. Naturally, it will be in demand in a situation similar to the one in which it was obtained. At that time the organism managed to survive and, being in a similar situation, it will mechanically reproduce all the sensations and actions that are recorded in its DNA. If he finds himself in a church, where icons stand and candles are burning, he will begin to roll on the floor and shout out threats. In this case, we will say that the demons have settled into it. If he suddenly speaks in Greek, then we will say that in a past life he lived in Greece. In fact, the young man has never lived in Greece or in Persia, he has no demons. He has written in his DNA molecules critical information that prevents him from living peacefully and which, with the help of Freud's psychoanalysis, can be successfully removed.

What can we say in conclusion on this issue? Critical information threatening the existence of directly the cells of our body is recorded in the silent loci of the DNA molecule. At the person this information occupies almost all volume of a molecule of DNA as for a huge period of its existence of such situations there was a huge quantity. Situations were often similar, so we observe a large number of repetitions in silent loci. Over time, old recordings may be erased, since information recorded in silent loci is significantly younger than in coding genes. Thus, the fact that there is no place for chance in Nature is once again confirmed, and each phenomenon in it has its own purpose. And we, people, should understand that not always our behavior is dictated by reason and, therefore, it is not always adequate to the circumstances.

Yelikov S.L.