A mythological creature with the head of a lion, body of a goat, tail of a dragon or serpent. But they're human, too.

This is an article originally written as one of my blogs. However, it's so fascinating and educational, I copied it here.

The dictionary defines the term chimera as `An  individual,  organ,  or  part consisting of tissues of diverse  genetic  constitution,  produced as a result of organ transplant, grafting, or genetic engineering.' But they're so much more fascinating than that dry, colorless explanation would suggest. CSI repeated a show several times that absolutely blew me out of the water first time around. A woman identified a man as being her rapist, the one who tried to kill her but didn't succeed. If this were true , Grissom knew that the man she accused had a past history of violent rape and murder and was wanted for some time. However, on checking his DNA, he proved innocent. But since the DNA showed the rapist was a close family member of this man, the CSI's went after his four brothers, to no avail. None of the DNA taken from them matched. The victim, however, kept insisting the original suspect was guilty and only after he murdered her--thinking he'd go free--did the truth become evident. This man was supposed to be a twin--a fraternal twin. However, when the two eggs were fertilized, one was drawn back into itself. In other words, they matched. Meaning, the suspect had his own DNA and that of his unborn "twin". Taking DNA from a mouth swab would yield separate DNA from that drawn in the form of blood from an arm. That is mind boggling. And the truth is: these people really exist. Whether it's a result of genetic engineering, organ transplants or fertilized eggs merging, chimeras do exist. I don't think they're freaky. Rather I think they're one step above most of us in the evolution chain. Just think, what is the effect of two separate DNA's in one body? Are they healthier? Immune to disease? If I were a scientist, or a geneticist, I'd be studying this right now. And who's to say that someone isn't studying the effects right now?



Author's Note:

DNA taken from identical twins is identical because they originated from the same egg that split. However, DNA taken from fraternal twins involving two separate eggs, differs.