From: "Jed Rothwell" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: OFF TOPIC Chimpanzee genome decoded
> Just like us, almost. See: > > http://www.wired.com/news/medtech/0,1286,68706,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_10 > > QUOTE: > > "[Human and chimp] DNA remains highly similar -- about 96 percent to almost > 99 percent identical, depending on how the comparison is made. I think what is talked about here are the genes, which comprise only a quite small portion of the actual DNA, the rest once regarded as "junk", not conserved, and so used for individual identification. I have seen mention that the genes encode for the proteins common throughout many species as "building material", and the "junk" is the much more complex assembly instructions on how to make a human or a chimp. We eat the building material provided by other organisms, and rearrange it accoring to our own building plans. Mike Carrell
