How does this relate to DNA? Well, there are many codes in our DNA that scientists have yet to crack. Parts of our DNA, for example, have no known biological function, or at least we have yet to discover them. Maybe they have spiritual applications or are connected to the non-physical realm in some way. This seemingly useless DNA is referred to as ‘Junk DNA,’ or ‘non-coding DNA.’ But we are learning more about them each day, as Scientific American reports, so the label isn’t entirely accurate.
We may think we know a lot, but the things we think we know and hold to be true are always changing. Science was no less valid to us 50 years ago than it is today, but theories have changed because we have learned more. And our knowledge of DNA has just changed again, as physicists have confirmed that there is a second layer of information hidden in our DNA, meaning that there is more than one way that DNA mutations can affect us.
The way DNA folds play a role in controlling which genes are expressed inside of our bodies. When it comes to biology, we’re taught that DNA ‘makes us who we are’ through a sequence of letters. These codes would then determine which proteins to make in order to produce the necessary result. For example, there is a code for a protein that will make your skin brown, your eyes dark, etc. All of this is determined by the way DNA is folded. Since the DNA in our body is extremely long, spanning a length of up to two meters, it has to be wrapped and folded in a certain way to fit inside of our bodies.
Scientists have known for a long time that the way it is wrapped and folded determines what proteins are expressed. Right now, biologists are currently working on isolating mechanical cues that determine how DNA is folded, which is influenced by a number of environmental factors, and other concepts like epigenetics. Even the way we think and perceive the environment, how feel, and what we believe can shape our DNA.
Some of these mechanical cues have been identified by a group of scientists at Leiden University in the Netherlands. Led by Helmut Schiessel, they were, as Science Alert explains, “able to show that these cues affected how the DNA was folded and which proteins are expressed – further evidence that the mechanics of DNA are written into our DNA, and they’re just as important in our evolution as the code itself.”
The discovery suggests that one day, we may be able to manipulate the mechanisms that determine the way DNA is folded in order to hide certain genes that produce deadly diseases.