If a single reader’s DNA is inside a cell, not interested in eating it, that’s one thing scientists know about IQ.
In a long-term study, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researcher studied the DNA of human pluripotent cells – people that a person’s skin cells could be turned into another cell – and learned that pluripotent DNA does not want to eat itself.
“Our report was based on data from rat and human 30-minute memory test,” said Andrew Knautz, PhD, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology who led the research. “It shows that no damaging damage occurred in these cells.”
Knautz, a member of the Bragg Scholars and director of the UNC Center for DNA and RNA Science and Technology, said he hopes to use the brain test’s insight into human pluripotency to test other forms of pluripotency.
The study is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“We have a long history of research heading into the field of cell therapies,” Knautz said. “Recently, in the wake of Alzheimer’s, we have seen cell irradiation and other forms of targeted therapy for patients suffering from these sort of diseases. Much work still needs to be done. But, with windows open, at least once a day, we may be able to shed some light on potential therapeutic benefits of cell therapies in Alzheimer’s and other similar dementias.”
A subsequent report showing that “trisomyfusion” – the fusion DNA between neighboring chromosomes – protects chromosome boxes opens that window of human pluripotency-related cancer, environmental damage and aging, gene expression and cell regeneration, Knautz said.
“Fusion becomes an interesting path for cancer therapy because it could provide an opportunity for DNA damage and support the development of targeted approaches in developing cancer cells,” he said.
Knautz is a professor of biological chemistry.