You were formed from a single cell. To build you, and then keep you alive, the DNA in your cells needs to undergo replication every day to duplicate your chromosomes before cell division. Decades of research have determined that DNA replication begins at specific locations on the chromosome. These sites are called replication origins. Bacteria have a single replication origin but more complex organisms, such as humans, need thousands of these start sites.
In a paper recently published in Nature, our group at the University of Nottingham has demonstrated that not only are these start sites unnecessary, but that cells grow faster without them. This has implications for understanding the out-of-control DNA duplication seen in cancer cells.
Read the full, original story here: Selfish gene solves DNA replication puzzle
