![]() ![]() To acquire “spider sense,” one would need to have his or her head bitten-from the inside. Want super strength? Get ready to have every muscle bitten several times. Wall-climbing, though, is just one of Spider-Man’s powers. In this case, it would take multiple bites, and every cell would have to mutate in exactly the same way.” It all depends on where and when the mutation occurs. “Mutations are unpredictable, and altered DNA might turn on, or turn off, some mechanism that is important to how your body functions. “Radiation mutates randomly and could affect any of your 20,000 genes, so instead of super powers, you might end up with cancer,” she said. For one thing, mutating DNA in one cell doesn’t mean it will mutate the same bit of DNA in the other cells. Will it give anyone the power to climb walls and sense danger? Probably not. Radiation can absolutely alter DNA, she said. She also examines certain enzymes that turn gene functions on or off and how those actions might lead to disease. ![]() In the lab, she studies genetics and how it affects the formation of blood vessels. “The long answer is yes, but with a lot of luck and a lot of spider bites.” “The short answer is no,” said OMRF scientist Courtney Griffin, Ph.D. Still, it got researchers at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation wondering: Could it really happen? While Stan Lee wrote the original story way back in 1962, the idea that Spider-Man’s DNA-deoxyribonucleic acid-was altered by a spider’s bite came in later issues. ![]() In the comic series that spawned the film, a radioactive spider’s bite transforms puny Peter Parker from a nerd to a wall-climbing, web-spinning crime fighter. As “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” swings into theaters, children (and adults) around the world daydream about how fantastic powers would change their lives. ![]()
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