Are Identical Twins Really Identical?
Since identical twins are relatively rare, they often attract a great deal of curiosity. It is estimated that there are just 10 million identical twins in the world, which means about 1 in 80 births is the result of a twin pregnancy. Identical twins, also known as monozygotic twins, are born when a mother’s single fertilized egg is split into two parts after conception. Since identical twins are formed from the same zygote, their DNA is almost indistinguishable. While identical twins have the same basic genetic makeup, however, it is interesting to note that they do not have identical fingerprints. Recently, researchers have also proven the existence of “semi-identical” twins. These twins are born when one egg is fertilized by two sperm before splitting into two parts. This results in twins that have identical genes from their mother, but different genes from their father’s side. However, this form of twin pregnancy is quite uncommon. Although identical twins have many similarities, th
“You know something? I have a twin sister Jane and we are identical. Looking at her feels like looking in the mirror. It feels nice to have a best friend who looks so much like me! Yes, we are intimate friends and we share every little secret with each other. She is studying abroad and you know what? She is researching the genetics of identical twins! When she comes home, we have a blast and I miss her when she is away. She knows me and understands me better than anyone else and I know she will always be there for me. Come what may!” – Carol, identical twin Two offsprings born from the same pregnancy are known as twins. They may or may not be alike or of the same gender. Statistics say that 31 in every 1000 women give birth to twins. The study of twins interests genetic researchers around the world. Research has revealed some of the genetic factors in women that are responsible for multiple births while much research is still to be done. To begin, let us take a closer look at the conce
To many of you who come and ask about identical twins and how genetically identical they are, this is an interesting documentary movie (less than 15 minutes) about the effect of epigenetic factors on gene expression. The movie can be viewed here. So, away from Shakesperian plays where two twins are separated since their birth, even in similar geographical environmental conditions, there are other factors that can make identical genes behave differently: what a pregnant woman eats can not only affect her baby’s phenotype, but also his or her genotype and even the grandchildren genotype.
26-Jul-2005 Years ago, it wasn’t considered “PC” for identical twins to be too much alike, despite the fact that they are biologically identical, so sociologists stressed the differences between identical twins who were raised apart. Then later studies showed that identical twins are amazingly alike, even those who didn’t know they even had a twin: they married people with the same names, had the same favorite foods and favorite colors, etc. Now a recent study shows that Identical twins lose some of these similarities as they grow older. These differences may stem from environmental changes that chemically modify a person’s genes. Your DNA spiral stays the same, but your individual genes can change, depending on your exposure to chemicals, foods and environmental factors. Researchers Christoph Plass and Yue-Zhong Wu studied 40 pairs of twins from Spain, Denmark and the UK. The youngest set of twins was 3, and the oldest were 74. They were asked questions about their health, eating habi
