My Beautiful Genome
Page 32
212 “The point is that this does not generalize”: Nettle, Daniel. 2007. Personality, 216.
214 “Understanding genetic mechanisms”: Quoted in Holden, Constance. 2008. “Parsing the Genetics of Behavior.” Science 322(5903): 892–5.
216 “revolutionary mind”: Seed. 2009. “Revolutionary Minds: The Re-envisionaries.” http://revminds.seedmagazine.com/revminds/member/heejung_kim
216 Kim presented a group of Koreans: Kim, Heejung S., et al. 2010. “Culture, Serotonin Receptor Polymorphism and Locus of Attention.” Social, Affective and Cognitive Neuroscience 5(2–3): 212–8.
217 subjects to act out a job interview: Shalev, Idan, et al. 2009. “BDNF Val66Met Polymorphism Is Associated with HPA Axis Reactivity to Psychological Stress Characterized by Genotype and Gender Interactions.” Psychoneuroendocrinology 34(3): 382–8.
220 openness is … linked to cognitive flexibility: Kalbitzer, Jan, et al. 2009. “The Personality Trait Openness Is Related to Cerebral 5-HTT Levels.” Neuroimage 45(2): 280–5.
220 people … characterized by sensory processing sensitivity: See Aron, Elaine N. 1997. The Highly Sensitive Person: How to Thrive When the World Overwhelms You. New York: Broadway Books.
222 “We conduct this … to better understand the teenage”: IMAGEN Project. 2007. “The IMAGEN Study Has Started at the End of December 2007.” IMAGEN website press release (11 December). www.imagen-europe.com/en/imagen-study.php
224 Belsky argues we should be thinking … of plasticity: Belsky, Jay, and Michael Pluess. 2009. “Beyond Diathesis Stress: Differential Susceptibility to Environmental Influences.” Psychological Bulletin 135(6):885–908.
224 “dandelions” and “orchids”: Boyce, W. Thomas, and Bruce J. Ellis. 2005. “Biological Sensitivity to Context: An Evolutionary-developmental Theory of the Origins and Functions of Stress Reactivity.” Developmental Psychopathology 17(2): 271–301.
225 quality of parental care directly curbs … the vulnerable: Kinnally, Erin L., et al. 2009. “Parental Care Moderates the Influence of MAOA-uVNTR Genotype and Childhood Stressors on Trait Impulsivity and Aggression in Adult Women.” Psychiatric Genetics 19(3): 126–33.
227 “Personal genomics has a long way to go”: Pinker, Steven. 2009. “My Genome, My Self.” New York Times Magazine (7 January).
228 two American sisters, Tichelle and La’Tanya: Bazelon, Emily. 2006. “A Question of Resilience.” New York Times Magazine (April 30).
229 “genetically predisposed neural processing”: Schardt, Dina M. 2010. ”Volition Diminishes Genetically Mediated Amygdala Hyperreactivity.” Neuroimage 53: 943–51.
7 The Interpreter of Biologies
235 a group led by Mario Fraga: Fraga, Mario F., et al. 2005. “Epigenetic Differences Arise during the Lifetime of Monozygotic Twins.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 102(30): 10604–9.
237 rat babies … raised by uncaring mothers: Weaver, Ian C. G., et al. 2004. “Epigenetic Programming by Maternal Behavior.” Nature Neuroscience 7: 847–54.
237 tissue from twelve people who had committed suicide: McGowan, Patrick O., et al. 2009. “Epigenetic Regulation of the Glucocorticoid Receptor in Human Brain Associates with Childhood Abuse.” Nature Neuroscience 12(3): 342–8.
238 epigenetic effect … when a woman experiences depression: Oberlander, Tim F., et al. 2008. “Prenatal Exposure to Maternal Depression, Neonatal Methylation of Human Glucocorticoid Receptor Gene (NR3C1) and Infant Cortisol Stress Responses.” Epigenetics 3(2): 97–106.
241 the future of the pharmaceutical industry: PricewaterhouseCoopers. 2009. “Pharma 2020: Challenging Business Models” (April). www.pwc.com/gx/en/pharma-life-sciences/pharma-2020-business-models
248 “We used to think our fate was in the stars”: Quoted in Jaroff, Leon J. 1989. The Gene Hunt.” Time (20 March): 62–7.
8 Looking for the New Biological Man
251 attracted to the body odor of men: Wedekind, Claus, et al. 1995. “MHC-dependent Preferences in Humans.” Proceedings of the Royal Society London B 260: 245–9.
252 Hutterites married following the same rule: Ober, Carole, et al. 1997. “HLA and Mate Choice in Humans.” American Journal of Human Genetics 61(3): 497–504.
253 “… the hypothesis that these genes influence mate choice”: Chaix, Raphaëlle, et al. 2008. “Is Mate Choice in Humans MHC-Dependent?” PLoS Genetics 4(9): 1–5.
254 no HLA preferences … of the Yoruba people: Chaix, Raphaëlle, et al. 2008. “Is Mate Choice in Humans MCH-dependent?” PLoS Genetics 4(9): e1000184. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgen. 1000184
255 HLA genes of three hundred Japanese couples: Ihara, Yasuo, et al. 2000. “HLA and Human Mate cChoice: Tests on Japanese Couples.” Anthropological Science 108: 199–214.
255 reviews all the experiments done … to mate choice: Havlicek, Jan, and S. Craig Roberts. 2009. “MHC-correlated Mate Choice in Humans: A Review.” Psychoneuroendocrinology 34(4): 497–512.
256 difference in their HLA genes … reported a better relationship: Garver-Apgar, Christine, et al. 2006. “MHC Alleles, Sexual Responsivity, and Unfaithfulness in Romantic Couples.” Psychological Sciences 17: 830–5.
260 “infidelity gene”: Walum, Hasse, et al. 2008. “Genetic Variation in the Vasopressin Receptor 1A Gene (AVPR1A) Associates with Pair-bonding Behavior in Humans.” PNAS - Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 105(37): 14153–6.
261 gene-tested Mexican couples in San Francisco: Risch, Neil, et al. 2009. “Ancestry-related Assortative Mating in Latino Populations.” Genome Biology 10(11): R132.
261 “People seem to gauge their partners”: Quoted in Aldous, Peter. 2009. “Guapa, It’s Your Genetic Ancestry I Love.” New Scientist (20 November).
264 “Looking down the line ten to twenty years”: Parker, Randall. 2010. “Counsyl Genetic Tests for Prospective Parents.” FuturePundit Blog (2 February). http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/006920.html
265 “The Future of Neo-eugenics”: Leroi, Armand M. 2006. “The Future of Neo-eugenics.” EMBO Reports 7(12): 1184–7.
266 inherited illness has become rarer: Marchione, Marilynn. 2010. “Gene Testing Spurs Decline of Some Dire Diseases.” Associated Press (19 February).
268 “social entrepreneurs with a mission”: Pollack, Andrew. 2010. “Firm Brings Gene Test to Masses.” New York Times (28 January).
268 “Universal genetic testing can drastically reduce”: Quoted in Counsyl. 2010. “Counsyl Test to Prevent Diseases Like Those in ‘Extraordinary Measures’ Now at 100+ Medical Centers.” Counsyl press release (22 January). www.counsyl.com/pr/counsyl-test-to-prevent-diseases-like-those-in-extraordinary-measures-now-at-100-medical-centers
269 compared … African and European genomes: Lohmueller, Kirk E., et al. 2008. “Proportionally More Deleterious Genetic Variation in European than in African Populations.” Nature 451: 994–7.
271 “sperm donor catalogue … with the most appealing”: London Sperm Bank. 2011. “Looking for Donated Sperm?” www.londonspermbank.com/looking_for_donated_sperm.html
271 “The identification of significant risk factors”: Goldstein, David B. 2010. “Personalized Medicine. ” Nature 463: 26–32.
272 Danish Abortion Board … refused: Rask Larsen, Julie. 2008. “Dansk abortlov er forældet og krænkende (Danish Abortion Law Is Outdated and Offensive).” Politiken (25 August).
273 “Child welfare laws certainly prevent”: Appel, Jacob M. 2009. “Mandatory Genetic Testing Isn’t Eugenics, It’s Smart Science.” Opposing Views (4 March). www.opposingviews.com/i/mandatory-genetic-testing-isn-t-eugenics-it-s-smart-science
277 “Will ‘risk’ and ‘potential’ eventually dominate”: Singh, Ilina, and Nikolas Rose. 2009. “Biomarkers in Psychiatry.” Nature 460 (9): 202–7.
278 the research team from the University of Georgia: Brody, Gene H., et al. 2009. “Prevention Effects Moderate the Association of 5-HTTLPR and Youth Risk Behavior Initiation: Gene x Environment Hypotheses Tested via a Randomized Prevention Design.” C
hild Development 80(3): 645–61.
280 “Today’s biocriminologies … are not”: Rafter, Nicole. 2008. The Criminal Brain: Understanding Biological Theories of Crime. New York: New York University Press, 246.
280 “I want to enlist modern genetics”: Ibid., 16.
282 “… a moral response to this question”: Lahn, Bruce T., and Lanny Ebenstein. 2009. “Let’s Celebrate Human Genetic Diversity.” Nature 461(18): 726–8.
283 the best way to avoid the problem of politics: Rose, Steven. 2009. “Darwin 200: Should Scientists Study Race and IQ? No: Science and Society Do Not Benefit.” Nature 457: 786–8.
284 contrasted Asian culture and Western culture: Way, Baldwin M. and Lieberman, Matthew D. 2010. “Is there a genetic contribution to cultural differences? Collectivism, individualism and genetic markers of social sensitivity.” Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience 5(2–3): 203–11.
285 “When enough brains are predisposed”: Lieberman, Matthew D. 2009. “What Makes Big Ideas Sticky?” In Brockman, Max (ed.) What’s Next?:Dispatches from the Future of Science. New York: Vintage, 89–103.
285 “a new science of human nature”: Fowler, James H., and Darren Schreiber. 2008. “Biology, Politics, and the Emerging Science of Human Nature.” Science 322(5903): 912–4.
287 “I’m a conservative reactionary”: Hacking, Ian 2009. “Current Controversies: Ian Hacking.” On the Human Blog (30 March). http://onthehuman.org/2009/03/current-controversies-ian-hacking
Acknowledgments
MY BEAUTIFUL GENOME was for a long time merely an idea and without the generous support that the project has received, it would never have solidified into a book. For this, I wish to express my sincere gratitude to the Danish Arts Council, the Oticon Foundation, and the Carlsberg Memorial Grant.
My thanks go to the many individuals who gave precious time and granted me the chance to explore the personal genomics revolution with them: Linda Avey, 23andMe and the Brainstorm Research Foundation; Jason Bobe, the Personal Genome Project; John Boyce, Consumer Genomics Show; Tamara Brown, GenePartner; Michael Cariaso, BioTeam; George Church, Harvard University and the Personal Genome Project; Earl Collier, deCODE Genetics; Edward Farmer, deCODE Genetics; Anne-Marie Gerdes, Copenhagen University Hospital; Bennett Greenspan, FamilyTreeDNA; Dean Hamer, US National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health; Henrik Skovdahl Hansen, Psychological Publishers; Kenneth Kendler, Virginia Commonwealth University, and Sue Kendler; Susanne Kjergaard, Copenhagen University Hospital; Gitte Moos Knudsen, Center for Integrated Molecular Brain Imaging, Copenhagen University Hospital; Jennifer Larsen, H. Lundbeck A/S; Armand Leroi, Imperial College, London; Cecilie Löe Licht, Copenhagen University Hospital; Diana Gale Matthiesen, Danish Demes; Kirk Maxey; Jen McCabe, Health Management Rx Blog; Ugo Perego, Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation and GeneTree.com; Robert Plomin, King’s College, London; Craig Roberts, University of Liverpool; Birgitte Søgaard, H. LundbeckA/S; Kári Stefánsson, deCODE Genetics; Moshe Szyf, McGill University; Dan Vorhaus, Genomics Law Report; James D. Watson, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Claus Wedekind, University of Lausanne; Daniel Weinberger, US National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health; Spencer Wells, National Geographic Society; and Scott Woodward, Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation.
For great help and inspiration, I would like especially to thank my contacts at Novo Nordisk, Novozymes, Danisco, H. Lundbeck, and ALK.
I am indebted to Karen Gahrn, Anna Libak, and Thomas G. Jensen for providing valuable comments on the manuscript and to my agent Peter Tallack for assuming the sometimes very difficult task of representing a Danish writer in the English-speaking world. I praise my luck for having had the chance to work with Robin Dennis at Oneworld Publications – now I know what good editing is.
Special thanks go out to Debbie Marks and Chris Sander for their friendship, extraordinary hospitality, and not least for innumerable discussions about science, life, and everything in between.
Finally, my great appreciation to Morten Malling – a truly patient man – for helping to preserve my (relative) mental health.
Index
23andme Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, 121–5, Ref4, Ref5, Ref6, Ref7, Ref8
abortion Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4
Acu-Gen Biolab Ref1
ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) Ref1, Ref2
Africa Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, see also Khoisan people;Yoruba people
African Americans Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4, see also black people
African Ancestry Ref1
age-related macular degeneration (AMD) Ref1, Ref2
aggression, MAOA gene Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4, Ref5, Ref6
Alford, John Ref1
Allport, Gordon Ref1, Ref2
Alzheimer’s disease Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4
American Association of Human Genetics conference, Hawaii Ref1
American Journal of Human Genetics Ref1
Americans: ethnic mixture Ref1;
in study of cognitive flexibility Ref1, see also African Americans; Havasupai tribe; Hutterites; United States
ancestry, work of Genographic Project Ref1, Ref2
Andersen, Hans Christian Ref1
Annas, George Ref1
antisocial behavior Ref1, Ref2
Appel, Jacob Ref1
Apter, Joelle Ref1, Ref2
Aron, Elaine Ref1
art, using genetically manipulated bacteria Ref1
Asia, Central Ref1, Ref2
Asians Ref1, Ref2
Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA, California (1975) Ref1
asparagus Ref1, Ref2
Asperger’s syndrome Ref1
association studies Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
atrial fibrillation Ref1, Ref2
Australia Ref1
autism Ref1
autosomal analyses Ref1
Avey, Linda Ref1
Barlow, Denise Ref1
Barrick, Murray Ref1
Bathie, Andy Ref1
BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Beaver, Kevin Ref1
behavior see antisocial behavior; compulsive behaviors;‘risk behavior’; sexual behavior
behavioral genetics Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4, Ref5;
future role in choice of partner Ref1;
and heritability Ref1, Ref2;
importance of environmental factors Ref1, Ref2;
and social scientific research Ref1
Belsky, Jay Ref1, Ref2
Berg, Paul Ref1
beta blockers Ref1
biochemical processes, and gene manipulation using drugs Ref1
biocriminology, Rafter’s study Ref1
biodiversity Ref1
bioethics: and commercialization of HLA testing Ref1;
and selection in human reproduction Ref1, Ref2
biology: dynamism and complexity Ref1;
and gene technology Ref1;
and human nature Ref1, Ref2;
and identity Ref1, Ref2;
and responsibility Ref1
‘biosocial’ thinking Ref1, Ref2
birth control pills Ref1, Ref2
black people: in controversial studies of intelligence Ref1, Ref2;
study of children’s ‘risk behavior’ Ref1, see also African Americans
bladder cancer Ref1
Blair, Tony Ref1
blood tests: for diagnosis of mental illness Ref1, Ref2, see also epigenetics
Bobe, Jason Ref1
body odor, in Wedekind’s famous experiment Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Bolnick, Deborah Ref1
Bower, Peter Ref1
Boyce, John Ref1
Boyce, Thomas Ref1
Boyer, Herbert Ref1
brain: and body Ref1;
cerebral hemorrhage Ref1;
hippocampus Ref1, Ref2;
role of genes Ref1, Ref2, Ref3;
scanning and imaging genetics Ref1, Ref2;
Weinberger’s genetic studies Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
> Brainstorm Research Foundation Ref1
BRCA genes Ref1, Ref2, Ref3;
diagnostic test Ref1, Ref2
breast cancer: author’s family history and risk of Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4;
BRCA genes and development of Ref1;
and coffee consumption Ref1;
deCODE Genetics study Ref1;
screening program Ref1
breast removal Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4
Brin, Sergey Ref1
Brown, Tamara Ref1, Ref2
Brunner, Hans Ref1
Burchard, Esteban González Ref1
Bustamente, Carlos D. Ref1
caffeine Ref1
Camus, Albert Ref1
Canada Ref1
Canadians, in epigenetic research Ref1
cancer Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
cardiovascular diseases Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4
Cariaso, Michael Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Caspi, Avshalom Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4, Ref5, Ref6
Cattell, Raymond Ref1
Celera Ref1
cells Ref1, Ref2
Celtic peoples Ref1
cervical cancer, screening program Ref1
child welfare Ref1
childhood: account of sisters’ traumatic background Ref1;
effect of upbringing on gene activity Ref1;
and genetic sensitivity Ref1, Ref2;
and personality Ref1, Ref2;
and study of depression in New Zealand men Ref1, Ref2;
study showing link between abuse and suicide Ref1
children: genetic information and future for Ref1;
genetic testing Ref1, Ref2;
and health Ref1, Ref2, Ref3, Ref4;
study of ‘risk behavior’ in Ref1, see also fetuses; human reproduction; ‘virtual babies’
Chinese people Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
cholesterol measurements Ref1
Christian Scientist sect Ref1
chromosomes Ref1, Ref2, Ref3;
Y chromosome Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Church, George Ref1, Ref2, Ref3
Clickk Ref1
Clinton, Bill Ref1
Close, Glenn Ref1
cognitive effort, and self-control Ref1
cognitive flexibility Ref1, Ref2
Cohen (surname) Ref1