[Avodah] Mitochondrial DNA and the Mabul

[hankman]

I have two comments. 
1) I would not be so quick to bury the idea of “junk DNA.” There are relevant scientists who are not buying into the conclusions of the ENCODE study all be it, its appearance in respected journals with over 400 scientists involved. Only time will tell who is right, or if the truth (as it often does) lies somewhere in between.

2) I would imagine if up to 20-80% (depending upon who you listen to) is now significant and mostly involved in regulation, versus the 3-4% or so that was deemed to be significant before the ENCODE project (genes coding for proteins), then this should make for a major change in the SIGNIFICANT mutation rate in the past. If most of the genome, including all the new regulatory sections that were previously considered junk, now are considered to have mutations that are significant, whereas in the past the large majority of these mutations had no consequence as they only happened in junk DNA that had no consequences, then the effective mutation rate will be different than previously assumed. This could also lead to a theory for a non-constant mutation rate (creatively assumed by some in the past) depending on how much of the “junk DNA” (using the old term) was present at the era in question ie., the ratio of truly junk to the whole in any given era.

Kol tuv

Chaim Manaster
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