A Review on Junk DNA

Yash Sindhu; Alishba Aqlim; Surya Prakash D. V.

Abstract

For many years, although being incredibly catchy, the term junk DNA discouraged mainstream scientists from exploring noncoding genetic material. Among humans, the DNA that actually codes for protein synthesis is 2% only. Hence, the noncoding region of genome is then termed Junk DNA. The junk DNA component is drastically different. Hence at the time of investigating the role of satellite DNA for the fertility and survival in pure species, the scientists had this idea that these repetitive sequences of genome might play a key role in the process of speciation. The STR sequence around the motif has been shown to have a significant impact on transcription factor binding, offering hints as to what these repeating sequences may be accomplishing. The researchers reduced the mechanisms to their most fundamental components—naked DNA and transcription factors—in order to better understand the function of short tandem repeats in gene expression. Researchers may be able to get insight into the function of such sequences in polygenic illnesses by studying the effects of noncoding regulatory regions on transcription factor binding.

Abstract

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