Humans and Mice share 99% of genes
Posted by Westwind on Thu 5 Dec 2002 - 13:22
An article on the BBC's news site discusses how much similarity there is between men and mice.
I was quite taken with the quote from one scientist: "We share 99% of our genes with mice, and we even have the genes that could make a tail."
I wanna tail.
from MelSkunk: Rev_Boxer also submitted this story, just a little later than Westwind, with a link to CNN.
Comments
Doesn't really surprise me.
99% of the same genes, and an 80% genetic similarity.
After all we are both mammals, who share a common ancestor from at least 150 million years ago. It just shows that it only takes small changes to make a new species.
I wonder if it will ever be possible to tweak genes in a living creature, like us, to have changes result, like growing a tail.
I wanna tail too.
Smile! The world could use another happy person.
In short, yes; it's definitely possible to change genes in full-grown people and have observable changes. That's what happens every time you get a cold.
There's work on changing people's hair through genetic changes. It should be possible to grow a tail... but it would be a very painful process, and very tiring for you.
check it out: http://www.clasheerian.com/furthing/
And your pants wouldn't fit anymore. :)
Melissa "MelSkunk" Drake
You underestimate the dificulty of changing the genome in every cell in the body. Remember, your body fights off colds with a lot of succsess, the 'symptoms' of a cold are actualy your own body fighting it off not changes made by the cold. The body also attacks cells that are diferent from the 'normal' cells in that body. And the cases where it fails to do so usualy result in cancer type growth.
Genetic therapy is infact only feasable in young children who are growing new cells at a fast rate. And even then it is still plauged with problems. Recent trails on a simple gene therapy were halted after it resulted in lukemia.
Escentialy, the problem is that just because you 'grow' a new type of cell structre in a body by modifiation of the genome, it dosnt mean that the body wont react in just the same way as if you implanted it as foreign material.
And thats even before you get to the problem of having cells form into their discrete organ structures. We dont even know how that happens naturaly, let alone replicating it scientificaly. (PS. The famious 'Mouse with a Human Ear' was infact a cartalage graft, the mouse did not grow the human ear.)
That's why I'm glad they haven't perfected it yet...that gives me all those years not only to save up the money for it, but to think it over.
Most likely I'll wait until they can grow me a custom tail...I want one wif fluffy fox fuzz, unnaturally grown by yours truly!
=^.^=
Smile! The world could use another happy person.
Hmmm...given the choice of 1) keeping things the way they are, or 2) having a tail and thereby having to replace parts of my wardrobe...
I'd vote for #2 in a New York nanosecond.
New York nanosecond... how fast is that anyway?
For that matter, something I've wondered for the longest time: What in the name of all that is good and furry is a 'Bronx Cheer'? Can anybody answer that?
Tlaren }:=8}
Well, since you asked...
**THHHPPPPTT!!!!**
A Bronx cheer is a raspberry. *THHHBBPHHHTT!*
*blink blink* huh... Well thanks you two, interesting.
Tlaren }:=8}
Actually, humans do have the reminance of a tail, we have a tail-bone called the coccyx. Well, you probably knew that, but did you also know that up until about a month, human zygotes are completly visually indistinguishable from that of a bird, fish or reptile
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