Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Point and Frameshift Mutations01:30

Point and Frameshift Mutations

1.6K
Point mutations are genetic alterations involving the change of a single nucleotide base pair in DNA. Depending on how the alteration affects protein synthesis, they can lead to various consequences.Point mutations fall into the following types:Silent mutations occur when a nucleotide change does not alter the amino acid sequence due to the redundancy of the genetic code. For instance, changing ACC to ACA still encodes threonine, leaving the protein function unaffected. This occurs because...
1.6K
Spontaneous and Induced Mutations01:30

Spontaneous and Induced Mutations

3.0K
Spontaneous mutations arise infrequently during DNA replication due to errors in the process. A key factor behind these errors is tautomeric shifts in nitrogenous bases, where bases transition from keto to enol forms or amino to imino forms. This shift can alter base-pairing rules, leading to mutations. Additionally, reactive oxygen species (ROS) arising from aerobic metabolism can damage DNA, resulting in depurination (loss of a purine base) or depyrimidination (loss of a pyrimidine base).
3.0K
Mutations in Microorganisms01:18

Mutations in Microorganisms

1.1K
Mutations are heritable changes in an organism’s genome involving alterations in the base sequence of DNA or RNA. These changes can influence cellular processes and phenotypic traits, potentially transforming the unaltered wild type into a mutant form. Such changes, termed forward mutations, are pivotal in shaping the genetic diversity of organisms.RNA viruses exhibit the highest mutation rates due to the absence of robust proofreading mechanisms during genome replication. In contrast,...
1.1K
Mutations01:39

Mutations

96.9K
Overview
96.9K
Mutations01:35

Mutations

45.5K
Mutations are changes in the sequence of DNA. These changes can occur spontaneously or they can be induced by exposure to environmental factors. Mutations can be characterized in a number of different ways: whether and how they alter the amino acid sequence of the protein, whether they occur over a small or large area of DNA, and whether they occur in somatic cells or germline cells.
Chromosomal Alterations Are Large-Scale Mutations
While point mutations are changes in a single nucleotide in...
45.5K
Mutations01:39

Mutations

13.7K
No description available
13.7K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Ideal Cardiovascular Health Metrics and Risk of Incident Early-Onset Vasomotor Symptoms Among Premenopausal Women.

The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism·2022
Same author

Nanoscale Antiferromagnetic Domain Imaging using Full-Field Resonant X-ray Magnetic Diffraction Microscopy.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2022
Same author

The flying spider-monkey tree fern genome provides insights into fern evolution and arborescence.

Nature plants·2022
Same author

Ruptured pseudoaneurysm of the internal maxillary artery in zygomaticomaxillary fracture: a case report.

Archives of craniofacial surgery·2022
Same author

H-lignin can be deposited independently of CINNAMYL ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE C and D in Arabidopsis.

Plant physiology·2022
Same author

Mitigation of scintillation in FSO communication using a temporally and spatially incoherent spectrum-sliced light source.

Optics letters·2022
Same journal

A viral ORFeome library for systems-level genetic dissection of host-pathogen interactions.

Cell·2026
Same journal

Co-option of lysosomal machinery shapes the evolution of the intracellular photosymbiosis supporting coral reefs.

Cell·2026
Same journal

LEF1 and niche factors determine T cell stemness across chronic diseases.

Cell·2026
Same journal

Recurrent patterns of TOP1-mediated neuronal genomic damage shared by major neurodegenerative disorders.

Cell·2026
Same journal

Four-dimensional molecular mapping from a spatial snapshot reveals the dynamics of hair follicle organogenesis.

Cell·2026
Same journal

Whole-cell particle-based digital twin simulations from 4D lattice light-sheet microscopy data.

Cell·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 1, 2026

The Golden Apple Snail Pomacea canaliculata: From Zygotes to Stable Mutant Lines
10:08

The Golden Apple Snail Pomacea canaliculata: From Zygotes to Stable Mutant Lines

Published on: December 23, 2025

863

Silent mutations make some noise.

Siyuan Zheng1, Hoon Kim1, Roel G W Verhaak2

  • 1Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030, USA.

Cell
|March 18, 2014
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Silent mutations, previously thought harmless, may drive cancer. This study reveals how these synonymous genetic changes can alter gene splicing, impacting protein function and potentially promoting cancer development.

More Related Videos

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations
04:52

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Published on: February 3, 2023

1.4K
A Deep-sequencing-assisted, Spontaneous Suppressor Screen in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe
07:55

A Deep-sequencing-assisted, Spontaneous Suppressor Screen in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Published on: March 7, 2019

8.6K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Apr 1, 2026

The Golden Apple Snail Pomacea canaliculata: From Zygotes to Stable Mutant Lines
10:08

The Golden Apple Snail Pomacea canaliculata: From Zygotes to Stable Mutant Lines

Published on: December 23, 2025

863
Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations
04:52

Following the Dynamics of Structural Variants in Experimentally Evolved Populations

Published on: February 3, 2023

1.4K
A Deep-sequencing-assisted, Spontaneous Suppressor Screen in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe
07:55

A Deep-sequencing-assisted, Spontaneous Suppressor Screen in the Fission Yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe

Published on: March 7, 2019

8.6K

Area of Science:

  • Genetics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Research

Background:

  • Synonymous mutations, also known as silent mutations, typically do not alter the amino acid sequence of a protein.
  • These mutations have historically been disregarded as functionally significant in cancer development.
  • The prevailing view is that synonymous mutations are neutral and do not contribute to oncogenesis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the potential oncogenic role of synonymous mutations in cancer.
  • To explore the mechanisms by which silent mutations might influence protein function.
  • To challenge the established understanding of non-coding mutations in cancer biology.

Main Methods:

  • Bioinformatic analysis of cancer genomic data.
  • In silico prediction of splicing alterations caused by synonymous mutations.
  • Experimental validation of splicing changes and their impact on protein function.

Main Results:

  • Synonymous mutations can significantly alter pre-mRNA splicing patterns.
  • Altered splicing can lead to changes in protein isoforms or expression levels.
  • These splicing alterations can promote oncogenic phenotypes in cancer cells.

Conclusions:

  • Synonymous mutations are not always silent and can possess oncogenic potential.
  • Altered transcript splicing represents a key mechanism by which silent mutations contribute to cancer.
  • This finding necessitates a re-evaluation of the functional impact of synonymous mutations in cancer genomics.