New Layer of Genetic Information Discovered

By measuring the rate of protein production in bacteria, a team at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) discovered that slight genetic alterations could have a dramatic effect. This was true even for seemingly insignificant genetic changes known as “silent mutations,” which swap out a single DNA letter without changing the ultimate gene product. To their surprise, the scientists found these changes can slow the protein production process to one-tenth of its normal speed or less.

As described today in the journal Nature, the speed change is caused by information contained in what are known as redundant codons — small pieces of DNA that form part of the genetic code. They were called “redundant” because they were previously thought to contain duplicative rather than unique instructions.

This new discovery challenges half a century of fundamental assumptions in biology. It may also help speed up the industrial production of proteins, which is crucial for making biofuels and biological drugs used to treat many common diseases, ranging from diabetes to cancer.

To know more:

http://www.ucsf.edu/news/2012/03/11794/new-layer-genetic-information-discovered

http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/nature10965.html

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New Layer of Genetic Information Discovered