00:00For decades, scientists believed each of the roughly 20,000 genes in the human body
00:05carries instructions for just one protein. Now, Harvard Medical School researchers say that's
00:10not the whole story. They discovered that genes on completely different chromosomes can combine
00:15to create chimeric mRNAs, hybrid instructions that produce entirely new, previously unknown proteins.
00:22Using a new direct RNA sequencing technique, the team compiled a library of more than 30,000 of
00:28these chimeric mRNAs found in mammalian cells. To prove they actually matter, researchers studied
00:34one in mice, a fusion of two genes called GSDMD and TMEM106A, and found it produces a real functional
00:42protein that helps regulate the body's inflammatory response. Senior author Ray III Jackson says nobody
00:48knew these existed. Not medicine, not the pharmaceutical industry. The findings suggest
00:54thousands of unknown proteins could be hiding throughout the human body. Disclosure. This
00:59video contains stock footage and content created or enhanced using AI-assisted tools.
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