By comparing the human genome to the genomes of 34 other mammals, Australian scientists have described an unexpectedly high proportion of functional elements conserved through evolution. While other studies have shown that around 5-8 percent of the genome is conserved at the level of DNA sequence, indicating that it is functional, the new study shows that in addition much more, possibly up to 30 percent, is also conserved at the level of RNA structure.

Source: New insight into the human genome through the lens of evolution