MovieChat Forums > Jupiter Ascending (2015) Discussion > DNA

DNA

posted 9 years ago by xX_Mikey_Xx
2 replies | jump to latest

Firstly, I just want to say that Jupiter Ascending was not the best movie of 2015 nor was it my favorite but it was really entertaining and not nearly as bad as people say it is.
However, it had some beautiful CGI (how did it not get nominated for an Oscar?!) and the thing that I found most interesting about this film was the idea, the main concept. The Wachowskis do have some really good ideas and this movie made me think about it: What would happen if two different people shared the same DNA, just like Jupiter Jones and the Abrasax mother?
The physical aspect would be the same but the memories would obviously be different, since they depend on your own life experience. But what about their behavior; the way they react to specific situations? Is that something that depends on the environment they grow up in? What do you think?
Of course that the chances of two people sharing the same DNA are really tiny and it is almost impossible for it to happen in real life. But is was an interesting concept.

The next bit is my signature... not something that happens in the movie... or does it?

Spoiler alert: Sean Bean's character dies

[–] whatisthisidonteven2017 9 years ago

There's no need to theorize because we already know the answer to that - their behavior wouldn't be identical! We know this because of identical twins. Identical twins do have the same DNA and yet they can and often do display very different behavior.

Here's an article with a possible answer on the why this happens: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/jun/02/twins-identical-genes-different-health-study

It is a baffling observation: individuals with identical genes and often very similar conditions of ubringing but who experience very different life outcomes. What could be the cause? The answer, says Spector, came to him in a Damascene moment four years ago. The causes of these differences were due to changes in the human epigenome, he realised.

"Essentially, epigenetics is the mechanism by which environmental changes alter the behaviour of our genes," he says. "This involves a process known as methylation, which occurs when a chemical known as methyl, which floats around the inside of our cells, attaches itself to our DNA. When it does so, it can inhibit or turn down the activity of a gene and block it from making a particular version of a protein in our bodies." Crucially, all sorts of life events can affect DNA methylation levels in our bodies: diet, illnesses, ageing, chemicals in the environment, smoking, drugs and medicines.

Thus epigenetic changes produce variation in disease patterns. And recent experiments carried out by Spector and his colleagues, in which they have looked at methylation levels in pairs of identical twins, back the theory.

[–] xX_Mikey_Xx 9 years ago

Thank you for your response and the interesting information you provided.

Spoiler alert: Sean Bean's character dies