27 May,2009 01:29 PM IST | | PTI
We often squirm at the sight of a mouse but do you know 80 per cent of its genes are similar to ours. A latest study published today has cracked the complete genome sequence of the mouse and revealed that four-fifth of the human genes are similar to that of the mice. Identification of these genes has enhanced the ability of scientists to experiment with those that are more applicable to human diseases.
"There are more genetic differences than previously thought. One fifth of the mouse genes are new copies that have emerged in last 90 million years of its evolution. These differences are likely to reflect many of the difference that distinguishes the biology of two species," the study says. The research conducted by a team of scientists from USA, Sweden and UK has revealed several new genes which are evolving at an "unusual" rapidity.
"Many of these newly discovered genes are evolving at an unusually rapid pace, probably as a result of an evolutionary 'arms race' among mice and their reproductive cells," the statement from the publisher journal PLoS Biology said. "These new findings are extremely important in helping us to separate genes that underpin biology that is same across all mammals, from genes that make humans and mice so different from one another," says Chris Ponting from University of Oxford, UK and one of the researchers on the project.
