Current beliefs about evolution may be overly focused on the role of the genome
Excerpt: "The common view of heredity is that all information passed down from one generation to the next is stored in an organism’s DNA. But Antony Jose, associate professor of cell biology and molecular genetics at the University of Maryland, disagrees.
In two new papers, Jose argues that DNA is just the ingredient list, not the set of instructions used to build and maintain a living organism. The instructions, he says, are much more complicated, and they’re stored in the molecules that regulate a cell’s DNA and other functioning systems.
In two new papers, Jose argues that DNA is just the ingredient list, not the set of instructions used to build and maintain a living organism. The instructions, he says, are much more complicated, and they’re stored in the molecules that regulate a cell’s DNA and other functioning systems.
Jose's argument suggests that scientists may be overlooking important avenues for studying and treating hereditary diseases, and current beliefs about evolution may be overly focused on the role of the genome, which contains all of an organism's DNA.
"DNA cannot be seen as the 'blueprint' for life," Jose said. "It is at best an overlapping and potentially scrambled list of ingredients that is used differently by different cells at different times."For example, the gene for eye color exists in every cell of the body, but the process that produces the protein for eye color only occurs during a specific stage of development and only in the cells that constitute the colored portion of the eyes. That information is not stored in the DNA.
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| This picture illustrates how epigenetic factors regulate transcription of the DNA that acts as very raw information platform, a kind of passive data base. Alternative splicing makes it possible for the cell to produce thousands of different proteins without changes in DNA. This is the most significant reason for phenotypic variation in organisms. |
My comment: DNA is just passive information and it has no control over cellular processes. These new discoveries also point out the weaknesses of the so called 'Central dogma of Biology' by teaching us how the cell uses DNA for production of RNA molecules but does it with regulation of proteins, epigenetic factors and several types of molecules.
Antony Jose suggests: "In evolution organisms could evolve through changes in the arrangement of molecules without changes in their DNA sequence."
Well, this is exactly what we can observe to happen in nature. For phenotypic variation there's no need for DNA changes. But epigenetic modifications alone mean just shuffling of pre-existing information. This means alternative biological programming. But this is not evolution! Evolution, to be true, needs increase in biological information resulting in growth of structural or functional complexity in organisms. This has never been observed.
Antony Jose suggests: "In evolution organisms could evolve through changes in the arrangement of molecules without changes in their DNA sequence."
Well, this is exactly what we can observe to happen in nature. For phenotypic variation there's no need for DNA changes. But epigenetic modifications alone mean just shuffling of pre-existing information. This means alternative biological programming. But this is not evolution! Evolution, to be true, needs increase in biological information resulting in growth of structural or functional complexity in organisms. This has never been observed.
