8 genetic mutations that can give you 'superpowers'

More than 99% of your genetic information is exactly the same as every other person on the planet.

Your genes determine your skin color, gender, hair color, and whether or not you have certain genetic diseases.

But it's in that less than 1% that things get interesting. Specific genetic variations, allow some of us to acquire certain — dare we say super — qualities.

Here are the ways our genes can predispose us to have special abilities:

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SEE ALSO: The way the horrific villain in ‘Jessica Jones’ got his superpowers isn’t entirely unreal

ACTN3 and the super-sprinter variant

We all have a gene called ACTN3, but certain variants of it help our bodies make a special protein called alpha-actinin-3. This protein controls fast-twitch muscle fibers, the cells responsible for the speedy tensing and flexing of the muscles involved in sprinting or weight-lifting.

This discovery, which happened around 2008 when geneticists studying elite sprinters and power athletes found that very few among them had two defective ACTN3 copies, is what led to the gene being dubbed the "sports gene." 

Among the general population, however, some 18% of us are completely deficient in the speedy-muscle-contracting protein — we inherited two defective copies of ACTN3.

hDEC2 and the super-sleeper mutation

Imagine if you could feel totally energized on just 4 hours of sleep each night. Some people are naturally that way. These people are called "short-sleepers," and scientists are only recently uncovering what exactly predisposes them to be this way. For the most part, researchers believe the capabilities are connected to specific genetic mutations, and have publicly identified one on the hDEC2 gene. 

That means short sleeping habits can run in the family, and scientists hope to one day learn how to harness this ability so it can be used to help people switch up their sleeping routines.

TAS2R38 and the supertaster variant

About a quarter of the population tastes food way more intensely than the rest of us.

These "supertasters" are more likely to put milk and sugar in bitter coffee, or avoid fatty foods. The reason for their reaction, scientists think, is programmed into their genes, specifically one called TAS2R38, the bitter taste receptor gene. The variant responsible for super-tasting is known as PAV, while the variant responsible for below-average tasting abilities is known as AVI.