The mysterious life of the twins

They look exactly the same, think alike, even wear the same skirt. The same twins only account for about half of the world's population, but their uniqueness is not only in appearance.

Scientists believe that studying twins will open the key to destroying the most dangerous enemies of humanity - cardiovascular disease, cancer and diabetes.

" In the next decade, I hope we will have more new special treatment drugs - even antidotes - for most of our common diseases, thanks to the twins community in the world. "Professor Tim Spector, director of the Epidemiological and Genetic Research Committee at St Thomas Hospital in London, spoke on DailyMail.

Other: Chris (left) and Xand van Tulleken have identical genomes but respond to different pain due to different life experiences.(Photo: BBC)

Twins with eggs are the phenomenon of a fertilized egg dividing in half just a few days after conception takes place. Medical experts still do not understand why this happens, but the result is that embryos are formed with 100% identical DNA sets.

Because they have the same genetic structure, their characteristics determined by the gene will be the same.

The twins are the human clone of nature, but it is worth mentioning that the higher the age, the greater the difference between them . It is this difference that helps scientists better understand the role of the environment and nourishment on people, and why some of us resist some diseases, while others do not. The findings are revealed on a new BBC program, The Secret Life Of Twins.

Twins with Chris and Xand van Tulleken, 31, are both doctors. They were so similar that even silver hair appeared at the same time, but when they tested their ability to endure pain by dipping their hands into ice water, they gave a different result.

" When I got into the water, I felt really painful right from the start, felt sick and almost tired, " Xand said, while Chris was unharmed. That's because Chris had a long time working in the Arctic, where he could happily jump into frozen lakes.

"The environment has changed the way Chris's genes are exposed, and his body's response is different from mine ," Xand said. The process by which the environment changes this genome is called 'epigenetics'.

Another example, when twin sisters Sue and Sheila Wright, lived in Kent, young, they were so similar that almost no one could tell. But after that, Sue married, her husband had Huntington's disease (cerebral palsy causing dementia and death). Heavy pressure not only left an impression on her appearance, but also in her genome.

" Due to illness, my husband started to become violent. I was hard to accept. I started working with a support group for people who were similar, but also ineffective. I Sue often had to talk to people who had intended to commit suicide because they couldn't stand it any more, and as a result, I started smoking heavily, eating irregularly and gaining weight , "Sue said. Her husband died 3 years ago.

In contrast, Sheila has an easy life, she also does not smoke and is more active. The twins go for blood tests to measure the level of aging. Scientists found that Sue was about 10 years older than Sheila, due to her body's reaction to the situation she lived in.

The 6-year-old Olivia Murphy was diagnosed with leukemia as soon as she was 2. Through intense chemotherapy, she began to lose hair and lose weight. However, her twin sister Isabella showed no signs of the disease, although the two babies had identical genomes.

The doctors examined the blood of the two girls and found that they all carried white blood disease genes. However, as a toddler, Olivia suffered from a series of tonsillitis and this condition caused the gene to mutate or change. Isabella does not suffer from the same disease, and thanks to that, her cancer gene still " sleeps ".

Now, researchers believe that from Olivia's case and similar cases, they can trace the path of the disease. " By studying twins and their similarities or differences, we can find specific genes that make them more sensitive to different types of illnesses, or to other factors like pain ."

" Since then we have been able to find ways to make drugs that directly target the mechanism of pain, monitor its pathway in the body and stop that pain ."

Studying 5,500 identical and identical eggs twins between the ages of 16 and 100, Professor Spector's investigation is the largest ever, but he still needs more twins to help further his research. save medicine.

Some other characteristics of twins with eggs:

- They have no identical fingerprints.Fingerprints are not entirely determined by genes, it is the result of independent growth in the uterus.

- Percentage of identical twins remains stable until now, although the number of multiple births has increased.On average, there are about 3 births per 1,000 births, while the number of births in general is 32.

- Percentage of identical twins is consistent between countries, races or mother's age.