Humans have a bit of shark in them
Jennifer Viegas
Discovery News
Wednesday, 30 May 2007
shark
Sharks and humans share certain physiological processes, like the way they have sex and how they protect their bodies from disease. Now scientists say they share common genes (Image: iStockphoto)
Some 450 million years ago, sharks and humans shared a common ancestor, making sharks our distant cousins.
And according to recent research, this kinship is evident in our DNA, as at least one shark species possesses several genes that are nearly identical to those in humans.
The elephant shark's genome is so similar to ours that we wind up having more in common with it, genetically speaking, than with other species, such as teleost (bony skeleton) fishes, which are nearer to us on the evolutionary tree.
"This was a surprising finding, since teleost fish and humans are more closely related than the elephant shark is to humans," says lead author Associate Professor Byrappa Venkatesh.
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Jennifer Viegas
Discovery News
Wednesday, 30 May 2007
shark
Sharks and humans share certain physiological processes, like the way they have sex and how they protect their bodies from disease. Now scientists say they share common genes (Image: iStockphoto)
Some 450 million years ago, sharks and humans shared a common ancestor, making sharks our distant cousins.
And according to recent research, this kinship is evident in our DNA, as at least one shark species possesses several genes that are nearly identical to those in humans.
The elephant shark's genome is so similar to ours that we wind up having more in common with it, genetically speaking, than with other species, such as teleost (bony skeleton) fishes, which are nearer to us on the evolutionary tree.
"This was a surprising finding, since teleost fish and humans are more closely related than the elephant shark is to humans," says lead author Associate Professor Byrappa Venkatesh.
1 Comment Add this link to... Bury
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