Re: Article: Is RNA inheritance possible?

From: William Morse (wdmorse_at_twcny.rr.com)
Date: 03/24/05 

Date: Thu, 24 Mar 2005 00:29:44 -0500 (EST)

"Robert Karl Stonjek" <rstonjek@bigpond.net.au> wrote in
news:d1sna4$2qfp$1@darwin.ediacara.org:

> Is RNA inheritance possible?
> Researchers find plant clues to a non-DNA pathway for genetic
> transmission By Laura M Hrastar
>
> Evidence for inheritance based on RNA has been found in a particularly
> unstable plant gene, researchers suggest in Nature this week. Robert
> Pruitt and colleagues at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind.,
> found that Arabidopsis plants homozygous for recessive mutant alleles
> of particular gene may inherit genomic information that is not found
> in the parent plant, but that existed in earlier generations.

Thanks for the references, which I snipped from this follow.
 
> Comment:
> The impact of this discovery can not be underestimated.

I agree. I think the impact of this discovery will be minimal - or perhaps
you meant to say "overestimated". But in fact this type of inheritance is
unlikely to be a significant factor in evolution - if it were, T.D. Lysenko
would be a respected figure in plant genetics. If additional work supports
the reported research, however, this may be another good example of the
maxim that "evolution is cleverer than you are" - Arabidopsis managed to
evolve a way to create backups long before human computer programmers did.

Yours,

Bill Morse

Relevant Pages

  • Article: Is RNA inheritance possible?
    ... Is RNA inheritance possible? ... Researchers find plant clues to a non-DNA pathway for genetic transmission ... Evidence for inheritance based on RNA has been found in a particularly ... Arabidopsis plants homozygous for recessive mutant alleles of particular ...
    (sci.bio.evolution)
  • Re: Linking IQ to social environment
    ... Take for instance the seed of a plant. ... These three environments gave IQ levels of 73, 81 and 109, ... Undoubtedly inheritance does play into it. ... True, but in terms of intelligence, genetics still determines our ...
    (soc.retirement)
  • Re: Quality and cost of seed
    ... doesn't not change the genetics of a plant. ... The irony being duly noted and all, what, pray tell, makes you think ...
    (rec.gardens.edible)
  • Re: Lace plant and apoptotic tissue formation of leaves
    ... had never considered the link between Cheese Plant leaf development and Lace ... there is plenty of O2, but there's also plenty of CO2 as well. ... While many wonder about genetics, they are really just tinkering with ...
    (rec.aquaria.freshwater.plants)