Researchers have found in plants the source of immortality

Germ cells pass on their genetic material to future generations, they are not limited by the Hayflick limit.

Germ cells pass on their genetic material to future generations, they are not limited by the Hayflick limit, which shows how many times you can share a somatic cell, after which she dies. Germ cells give rise to gametes, which, in turn, provide the appearance of the embryo. Embryonic cells divide and differenciate, forming tissues and organs of plants, and new germ cells.

It was thought that plant cells each time reprogrammed through epigenetic factors — molecules that change the activity of genes without DNA mutations. However, the evidence that this process does occur, was not.

Researchers have shown that in embryonic cells of the plant Arabidopsis thaliana is methylation, in which the attaching methyl groups to cytosine in the composition of the CpG-dinucleotide of DNA, composed of cytosine and guanine. The reprogramming in each generation occurs again, although it is known that in plants epigenetic settings can be stored in the offspring. According to scientists, the upgrade of the system of gene regulation is an important condition for stable operation of embryonic cells.

paradox