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Actually, it's been a thing for a while that we know the brain has somatic mutations which cause the DNA to differ from cell to cell. While the epigenetic tags
by kordless 10y ago
Actually, it's been a thing for a while that we know the brain has somatic mutations which cause the DNA to differ from cell to cell. While the epigenetic tags are also affected, it goes beyond attaching tags. The brain literally rewrites its own DNA.
https://www.genomeweb.com/sequencing-technology/single-neuron-sequencing-reveals-snvs-brain-cells-diverse-lineage https://www.genomeweb.com/sequencing-technology/single-neuro...
- astazangasta 10y agoAcquiring somatic mutations is not "rewriting its own DNA", it's just acquiring mutations. You can't replicate a piece of DNA without the chance of a mutation happening. The error rate in humans is about 1e-9 mutations/base, so by the time you've grown a brain you're likely to have a whole bunch of somatic mutations just by chance.
- yread 10y agoBetter link without paywall and with link to actual article http://neurosciencenews.com/neuron-lineage-genetics-2792/ http://neurosciencenews.com/neuron-lineage-genetics-2792/