
A friend asks, on reading this:
Far from being junk DNA, the pervasive retrotransposons that populate the genome have a powerful capacity to influence genes and chromatin. A new study demonstrates how the transcription of one such element, HERV-H, can modify the higher-order 3D structure of chromatin during early primate development.
– Michael I. Robson & Stefan Mundlos, “Jumping retroviruses nudge TADs apart” at Nature Genetics, volume 51, pages1304–1305 (2019)
Graur has been so convinced of junk DNA that he — last we heard — stopped even doing politeness on the subject any more.
Hmmm. Does someone have Miss Manners’ private e-mail or some other discreet means to get in touch with her, perhaps through a friend? Possibly Dr. Graur might wish to consider luncheon at some point. She is his guest, of course… 
Published on September 03, 2019 12:36