bob at aol.com (bob) wrote:
> wait, as far as i understand i was made from the union of a sperm and an
> egg cell. however, those are long gone. the DNA is still around, but DNA
> is not a cell. what cells in me are older than me? i think i am missing a
> genetic point. if i pass on my dna to my child, he or she will have half
> my dna but not any of "my" cells, i.e. cells in me right now. or will
> s/he? am i wrong?
>> as for the rest: what do you mean by saying my father's sperm cell was
> "selected out" ?
The sperm that fertilizes the eggs was "selected out" because, among other
things, it was the first able to get there and therefore, hopefully, the
healthiest.
When one of your cells is replaced, it makes a copy, the copy lifes on and
the old one dies (basically). But you think of it as "you". If I become
pregnant, my egg gets fertilized and then starts dividing. So all your cells
are the result of your mothers cell dividing. That cell is older that what
you consider to be "you". Basically every cell in your body is a direct
descendant of one of the first cells divisions. So from one point of view,
your cells are millions of years old.
--
Jennifer Petersen - Intradesign
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