ScienceDaily
Your source for the latest research news
Follow Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Subscribe RSS Feeds Newsletters
New:
  • Lost Medieval Chapel: Cult of Disemboweled Saint
  • Old-Growth Trees More Drought Tolerant
  • Early Life Experiences: Long-Lasting Impact ...
  • Nanomaterial Cuts Fat in Specific Parts of Body
  • 3D Printing Metal-Plastic Composite Structures
  • 2,000-Year-Old Shipwreck: Complex Trade
  • Mammoth Problem With Extinction Timeline
  • Ancient DNA: Origin Story of Ashkenazi Jews
  • Landslide Risk Remains Long After a Quake
  • Physicists Observe Wormhole Dynamics
advertisement
Follow all of ScienceDaily's latest research news and top science headlines!
Science News
from research organizations

1

2

Reappearance Of Missing Genetic Information Poses Exception To The Rule

Date:
March 28, 2005
Source:
National Science Foundation
Summary:
Researchers have discovered that “missing” genetic information unexpectedly reappears in later generations. By poring over the genome of the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, scientists at Purdue University found specific genetic information present in a “grandparent” and “grandchild,” even though it was seemingly absent in the “parent.”
Share:
FULL STORY

Researchers have discovered that “missing” genetic information unexpectedly reappears in later generations. By poring over the genome of the model plant, Arabidopsis thaliana, scientists at Purdue University found specific genetic information present in a “grandparent” and “grandchild,” even though it was seemingly absent in the “parent.”

advertisement

The study is featured in the March 24 issue of the journal Nature.

For more than a century, a basic tenet of inheritance has dictated that an organism’s genome passes directly from one generation to the next in a predictable manner—from grandparents—to parents—to children. Now, Susan Lolle, Robert Pruitt and their colleagues have shown this cardinal rule of inheritance is sometimes broken. The scientists reached their conclusion by tracking how genetic information passes through multiple Arabidopsis generations. In violation of current genetic theory, they found a significant percentage of the plant grandchildren had genetic information identical to that of the grandparent, but not the parent.

But how could the child acquire genetic information from its grandparent, if the parent had lost it? Lolle and Pruitt postulate that the “lost” genetic information securely resides outside the standard genome and is only retrieved under particular circumstances when it may be beneficial to restore genomic sequences back to an ancestral state. So, the information was not lost, but rather “hidden”—from scientists anyway.

How does the plant benefit by accessing a cache of its ancestor’s genomic information? Lolle said, “This ancestral information acts like a reserve genetic template that plants can make use of should living conditions become less ideal.” She continued, “In this way, we think plants get a ‘second chance’ to win the genetic lottery.”

Like any good scientist, Lolle was skeptical of her own results and hesitant to believe something so novel was occurring. For years she reasoned there were trivial explanations for what she was seeing. Eventually, however, Lolle could no longer discount the evidence, so she meticulously repeated experiments and verified results, ruling out all explanations afforded by conventional dogma. The data became irrefutable—the genetic information was “skipping” a generation.

It’s a nearly heretical theory. Indeed, the implications will have scientists pondering old results anew. As Rita Teutonico, the National Science Foundation program manager who oversees this work said, “We knew the project was ambitious, but these results challenge us to re-think some genetic paradigms and demonstrate that some very forward thinking ideas warrant investigation.” Teutonico continued, “This result illustrates the benefits of the NSF’s support of bold, high-payoff science.”

make a difference: sponsored opportunity

Story Source:

Materials provided by National Science Foundation. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Cite This Page:

  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
National Science Foundation. "Reappearance Of Missing Genetic Information Poses Exception To The Rule." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 28 March 2005. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050325153201.htm>.
National Science Foundation. (2005, March 28). Reappearance Of Missing Genetic Information Poses Exception To The Rule. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 4, 2022 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050325153201.htm
National Science Foundation. "Reappearance Of Missing Genetic Information Poses Exception To The Rule." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/03/050325153201.htm (accessed December 4, 2022).

  • RELATED TOPICS
    • Plants & Animals
      • Evolutionary Biology
      • Genetics
      • Biology
      • Cell Biology
      • Biochemistry Research
      • Biotechnology
      • Life Sciences
      • Biotechnology and Bioengineering
advertisement

  • RELATED TERMS
    • Arabidopsis
    • Introduction to genetics
    • DNA
    • Plant breeding
    • Genetic code
    • Genetics
    • Genetic recombination
    • Meiosis
advertisement

  Print   Email   Share

advertisement

1

2

3

4

5
Most Popular
this week

PLANTS & ANIMALS
Put the Kettle On! How Black Tea (and Other Favorites) May Help Your Health Later in Life
Honey Bee Life Spans Are 50 Percent Shorter Today Than They Were 50 Years Ago
525-Million-Year-Old Fossil Defies Textbook Explanation for Brain Evolution
EARTH & CLIMATE
Fossil Overturns More Than a Century of Knowledge About the Origin of Modern Birds
New Catalyst Could Be Key for Hydrogen Economy
Earth Might Be Experiencing 7th Mass Extinction, Not 6th
FOSSILS & RUINS
Oldest Evidence of the Controlled Use of Fire to Cook Food, Researchers Report
Human Evolution Wasn't Just the Sheet Music, but How It Was Played
World's Oldest Meal Helps Unravel Mystery of Our Earliest Animal Ancestors
advertisement

Strange & Offbeat
 

PLANTS & ANIMALS
A Self-Powered Ingestible Sensor Opens New Avenues for Gut Research
Ranches of the Future Could Be Home to Cows Wearing Smart-Watch-Style Sensors Powered by Their Movements
Flowers Show Their True Colors
EARTH & CLIMATE
Fossil Overturns More Than a Century of Knowledge About the Origin of Modern Birds
A Waste Windfall: New Process Shows Promise Turning Plastic Trash Into Pharmaceuticals
DNA Sequence Enhances Understanding Origins of Jaws
FOSSILS & RUINS
Mammoth Problem With Extinction Timeline
New Quantum Computing Feat Is a Modern Twist on a 150-Year-Old Thought Experiment
Ancient Superpredator Got Big by Front-Loading Its Growth in Its Youth
Explore More
from ScienceDaily

RELATED STORIES

Plants Use Their Roots to Measure Manganese Concentration Available in the Soil
Oct. 18, 2022 — Researchers demonstrate for the first time, using the model plant thale cress (Arabidopsis thaliana), how plants perceive manganese deficiency and which processes subsequently take place in the plant ...
Shining a Light Into 'Black Holes' in the Arabidopsis Genome
Nov. 11, 2021 — Scientists have sequenced the genome of the world's most widely used model plant species, Arabidopsis thaliana, at a level of detail never previously achieved. The study reveals the secrets of ...
How Information Beyond the Genetic Sequence Is Encoded in Plant Sperm
July 1, 2021 — Hereditary information is passed from parent to offspring in the genetic code, DNA, and epigenetically through chemically induced modifications around the DNA. New research has uncovered a mechanism ...
New Method to Improve Crops
Mar. 6, 2018 — Researchers have developed a new way to breed plants with better traits. By introducing a human protein into the model plant species Arabidopsis thaliana, researchers found that they could ...
advertisement


SD
  • SD
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Home
    • Home Page
    • Top Science News
    • Latest News
  • Health
    • View all the latest top news in the health sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Health & Medicine
      • Allergy
      • Alternative Medicine
      • Birth Control
      • Cancer
      • Diabetes
      • Diseases
      • Heart Disease
      • HIV and AIDS
      • Obesity
      • Stem Cells
      • ... more topics
      Mind & Brain
      • ADD and ADHD
      • Addiction
      • Alzheimer's
      • Autism
      • Depression
      • Headaches
      • Intelligence
      • Psychology
      • Relationships
      • Schizophrenia
      • ... more topics
      Living Well
      • Parenting
      • Pregnancy
      • Sexual Health
      • Skin Care
      • Men's Health
      • Women's Health
      • Nutrition
      • Diet and Weight Loss
      • Fitness
      • Healthy Aging
      • ... more topics
  • Tech
    • View all the latest top news in the physical sciences & technology,
      or browse the topics below:
      Matter & Energy
      • Aviation
      • Chemistry
      • Electronics
      • Fossil Fuels
      • Nanotechnology
      • Physics
      • Quantum Physics
      • Solar Energy
      • Technology
      • Wind Energy
      • ... more topics
      Space & Time
      • Astronomy
      • Black Holes
      • Dark Matter
      • Extrasolar Planets
      • Mars
      • Moon
      • Solar System
      • Space Telescopes
      • Stars
      • Sun
      • ... more topics
      Computers & Math
      • Artificial Intelligence
      • Communications
      • Computer Science
      • Hacking
      • Mathematics
      • Quantum Computers
      • Robotics
      • Software
      • Video Games
      • Virtual Reality
      • ... more topics
  • Enviro
    • View all the latest top news in the environmental sciences,
      or browse the topics below:
      Plants & Animals
      • Agriculture and Food
      • Animals
      • Biology
      • Biotechnology
      • Endangered Animals
      • Extinction
      • Genetically Modified
      • Microbes and More
      • New Species
      • Zoology
      • ... more topics
      Earth & Climate
      • Climate
      • Earthquakes
      • Environment
      • Geography
      • Geology
      • Global Warming
      • Hurricanes
      • Ozone Holes
      • Pollution
      • Weather
      • ... more topics
      Fossils & Ruins
      • Ancient Civilizations
      • Anthropology
      • Archaeology
      • Dinosaurs
      • Early Humans
      • Early Mammals
      • Evolution
      • Lost Treasures
      • Origin of Life
      • Paleontology
      • ... more topics
  • Society
    • View all the latest top news in the social sciences & education,
      or browse the topics below:
      Science & Society
      • Arts & Culture
      • Consumerism
      • Economics
      • Political Science
      • Privacy Issues
      • Public Health
      • Racial Disparity
      • Religion
      • Sports
      • World Development
      • ... more topics
      Business & Industry
      • Biotechnology & Bioengineering
      • Computers & Internet
      • Energy & Resources
      • Engineering
      • Medical Technology
      • Pharmaceuticals
      • Transportation
      • ... more topics
      Education & Learning
      • Animal Learning & Intelligence
      • Creativity
      • Educational Psychology
      • Educational Technology
      • Infant & Preschool Learning
      • Learning Disorders
      • STEM Education
      • ... more topics
  • Quirky
    • Top News
    • Human Quirks
    • Odd Creatures
    • Bizarre Things
    • Weird World
Free Subscriptions

Get the latest science news with ScienceDaily's free email newsletters, updated daily and weekly. Or view hourly updated newsfeeds in your RSS reader:

  • Email Newsletters
  • RSS Feeds
Follow Us

Keep up to date with the latest news from ScienceDaily via social networks:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
Have Feedback?

Tell us what you think of ScienceDaily -- we welcome both positive and negative comments. Have any problems using the site? Questions?

  • Leave Feedback
  • Contact Us
About This Site  |  Staff  |  Reviews  |  Contribute  |  Advertise  |  Privacy Policy  |  Editorial Policy  |  Terms of Use
Copyright 1995-2022 ScienceDaily or by other parties, where indicated. All rights controlled by their respective owners.
Content on this website is for information only. It is not intended to provide medical or other professional advice.
Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily, its staff, its contributors, or its partners.
Financial support for ScienceDaily comes from advertisements and referral programs, where indicated.
— CCPA: Do Not Sell My Information — GDPR: Privacy Settings —