10 Reasons Why Genes Are Awesome

Here are 10 extraordinary facts about genes.

Genes do a lot of wonderful stuff like making us who we are, but there are many other really cool things about them we don’t consider very often.
Here are 10 extraordinary facts about the molecular units.
Number 10. They can reveal some interesting historical tidbits. For example, testing showed that Genghis Kahn could have as many as 16 million male descendants walking around today. All of them have a common ancestor who lived around the conqueror’s time and stomping grounds. Plus, Kahn was just that kind of guy.
Number 9. Genes can make pigs glow. The effect comes as a result of injecting embryos with DNA gathered from jellyfish, waiting for them to become piglets, and then putting the animals under a black light.
Number 8. Fears may be genetic. Researchers from multiple US institutions including Emory University School of Medicine found that DNA in mice can be altered by traumatic events and then passed to subsequent generations. Descendants showed aversions to study-relevant scents that they themselves had never previously encountered.
Number 7. A lot of people are carrying ancient virus DNA. Our Neanderthal ancestors were the first to contract the illnesses and traces of them been around ever since. Whether or not the existing material is still able to cause diseases is unknown.
Number 6. Three-parent embryos may become the new normal. The process involves an in vitro fertilization technique that utilizes 3 distinct sets of DNA and is intended as a disease-prevention measure. While the UK has approved this procedure, the FDA has not moved forward with human trials.
Number 5. Most of our genes are junk. A 2014 study showed that just a little over 8 percent of our DNA actually does something significant. The rest is comprised largely of evolutionary leftovers.
Number 4. There is such a thing as an immunity to aging. The phenomenon is called negligible senescence and occurs most notably in turtles and lobsters. Unfortunately, humans lack the genes that stop the process of growing old. While it’s considered to be to the evolutionary advantage of some of Earth’s creatures, people aren’t among them.
Number 3. There’s a time capsule full of important people’s DNA. It was sent to the International Space Station as part of an initiative called Operation Immortality. Stephen Hawking and Stephen Colbert are two of the many contributors.
Number 2. Genetic analysis suggests the Vikings landed in America first. A study revealed that a group of people in Iceland have DNA that is similar to Native Americans and is thought to date back to around AD 1 thousand. That supports a theory that the Vikings arrived several centuries before Columbus, and introduces the possibility they took an indigenous woman on their return voyage.
Number 1. Rice has a larger genome than people do. A single cell of the grain contains between 40 thousand and 60 thousand genes.
Human cells have a comparatively modest 35 thousand or so a piece, but we just use them differently.
What do you think is the most extraordinary thing about genes?