Fame is something that sticks to someone or something, a quality earned or gained for no reason at all. It is also a force of connection. A famous person or thing forms a hub in a network that binds us all. Genes can also be famous, stars in the parade of the animal kingdom.
So what genes are the Beatles of DNA? Genes so famous they unite species across the globe? Given there are 8 million or 100 million probable species on earth—depending on who you ask—it was no easy task to select the Fab Four. But after asking some of the world’s top biologists1, we settled on our John, Paul, George, and Ringo, known as TP53, CYP51, TAS1R2/TAS1R3, and opsins. Each (described below), over eons, has been critical to the development and health of living creatures.
Read the full, original story here: Genes That Won the Fame Game