why is dna in somatic cells
DNA Content. The somatic cells of an animal species contain a specific number of chromosomes that must be maintained for the cells to work properly. In humans, they each contain 46 chromosomes, which includes 22 pairs of homologous chromosomes and one pair that is non-homologous.erm cells each contain 23 chromosomes. When an egg and sperm fuse to produce a zygote, the new cell therefore has the full complement of 46, with one set of 23 from the egg and one from the sperm. All of the somatic cells that develop from the zygote have the same 46 chromosomes.