World record broken for living thing with most DNA

A fern species, Tmesipteris oblanceolate, has set a record for having the largest genome of any living organism, with 160 billion base pairs of DNA, which would stretch about 100 meters when unraveled.

This fern, found in New Caledonia, surpasses even Big Ben in DNA length. The genome's vast size intrigues scientists, who aim to understand its impact on the plant's functions and extinction risk.

This discovery, published in iScience, highlights the complexity of plant genomes, as the fern now holds three Guinness World Records.

Despite its unassuming appearance, it contains 50 times more DNA than humans.