When the junk isn't junk

Mammalian Introns: When the Junk Generates Molecular Diversity

Introns represent almost half of the human genome, yet their vast majority is eliminated from eukaryotic transcripts through RNA splicing. Nevertheless, they feature key elements and functions that deserve further interest. At the level of DNA, introns are genomic segments that can shelter independent transcription units for coding and non-coding RNAs which transcription may interfere with that...

e-Junk explosion.

Background: The Viridiplantae comprise two major phyla: the Streptophyta, containing the charophycean green algae and all land plants, and the Chlorophyta, containing the remaining green algae. Despite recent progress in unravelling phylogenetic relationships among major green plant lineages, problematic nodes still remain in the green tree of life. One of the major issues concerns the scaly bi...

The role of Junk DNA

Many efforts have been done in order to explain the role of junk DNA, but its function remain to be elucidated. In addition the GC-content variations among species still represent an enigma. Both these two mysteries can have a common explanation: we hypothesize that the role of junk DNA is to preserve the mutations probability that is intrinsically reduced in GC-poorest genomes.

Junk Representations Lawrence

Many philosophers and psychologists who approach the issue of representation from a computational or measurement theoretical perspective end up having to deny the possibility of junk representations—representations present in an organism's head but that enter into no psychological processes or produce no behaviour. However, I argue, a more functional perspective makes the possibility of junk re...

Junk food thoughts.