Sea urchins share our genes, research reveals

HUMANS and sea urchins are unlikely cousins, a blueprint of the sea-creature’s genetic code has revealed.

The spiky invertebrates are more closely related to people than either flies or worms, and share more than 7,000 of the same genes, scientists have found.

Within urchin DNA are genes associated with many human disorders, including muscular dystrophy and Huntingdon’s disease.