What it means to share DNA with other organisms

Question

We share 60% of our DNA with bananas, but we are clearly not 60% banana.

In: 43

Answer 1

DNA fundamentally is instructions to make proteins. A lot of the basic proteins needed for cells to function (build cell membranes, move things around, tie themselves in place, etc) are going to be the same even in very different organisms. As a result, pretty much any multicellular organisms are going to share a lot of DNA, because the instructions needed for the basic building blocks of cells are the same.