From: "Ed Carp (ecarp@netcom.com)" <ecarp@netcom.com>
Date: Wed, 13 Dec 1995 05:47:36 +0800
To: Rich Graves <llurch@networking.stanford.edu>
Subject: Re: EXON
Message-ID: <199512122017.OAA20584@khijol>
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain


> Date:          Mon, 11 Dec 1995 23:10:25 -0800 (PST)
> From:          Rich Graves <llurch@networking.stanford.edu>
> To:            Scott Binkley <SBinkley@atitech.ca>
> Cc:            High Society List <cypherpunks@toad.com>
> Subject:       Re: EXON

> On 11 Dec 1995, Scott Binkley wrote:
> 
> > Could someone please explain to me what this "EXON" thing is??
> 
> A nucleic acid chain (RNA or DNA) is composed of exons, which are 
> "active" sequences of nucleotides that are expressed as polypeptides, and 
> "introns," what is known as "junk DNA." Only about 2% of the 6 billion or 
> so base pairs that make up the human genome are exons.
> 
> (There is some controversy in molecular biology circles as to whether 
> "junk DNA" is really "junk" just because it doesn't build proteins. It 
> could perform a regulatory or "frame-check" function.)

Actually, I think that once the matter is further studied, scientists 
will discover that the "junk DNA" is not junk, but inactive DNA, 
waiting for a "trigger".