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What we are reading today:
“The decision makes Britain one of the first countries in the world to grant this type of authorisation on one of science’s new frontiers and follows months of deliberation by the British embryology regulator.
The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) said it had approved an application from Dr Kathy Niakan of the Francis Crick Institute for a new laboratory research licence “to include gene editing of embryos”.”
“At the individual level, the researchers also analyzed how risk-taking propensity relates to the personality traits of openness to experience, agreeability, conscientiousness, neuroticism, and extraversion. They found that individual risk-taking propensity is associated with the traits of extraversion and openness to experience. “In other words, if someone becomes more open or more extraverted over the course of time, their willingness to take risks is also likely to increase – and vice versa,” explains co-author David Richter (SOEP).”
““Almost all of us agree there was some back-to-Africa gene flow, and it was a pretty big migration into East Africa,” says Skoglund. “But it did not reach West and Central Africa, at least not in a detectable way.” The error also undermines the paper’s original conclusion that many Africans carry Neanderthal DNA (inherited from Eurasians whose ancestors had interbred with the group).”
“Speaking about the findings, lead researcher Dr Deirdre Robertson commented: “The way we think about, talk about and write about ageing may have direct effects on health. Everyone will grow older and if negative attitudes towards ageing are carried throughout life they can have a detrimental, measurable effect on mental, physical and cognitive health.”
Principal Investigator of TILDA, Professor Rose Anne Kenny, added: “Researchers and policy makers can work together to develop and implement societal-wide interventions to target attitudes and perhaps, ultimately, find novel ways of maintaining health in later life.””
“While the exact reason for these connections isn’t clear, it’s possible that increased inflammation, nutrients and hormones linked to diabetes and obesity may be responsible for the added autism risk, said Elinor Sullivan, a biology and neuroscience researcher at the University of Portland, in Oregon, who wasn’t involved in the study.
“These factors impact how the brain develops,” Sullivan said. “The risk for autism would be further increased if women were obese and had diabetes as the levels of inflammatory factors and nutrients that the offspring would be exposed to would be further elevated.””
“Books that achieve both — changing science and reaching the public — are rare. Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species (1859) was one. The Selfish Geneby Richard Dawkins is another. From the moment of its publication 40 years ago, it has been a sparkling best-seller and a scientific game-changer.”
19 Comments
BrittanyNelson · February 2, 2016 at 1:54 pm
While the risks are high for embryonic genetic modification to eventually lead to “designer babies,” I am in support of the research Britain has allowed. I can only imagine how hard a pregnancy would be knowing that the child you are bringing into the world has a disease like sickle cell anemia or cancer. If scientists could learn to alter those genes before birth and completely change the course of a new life, I believe that is the right thing to do. With strict guidelines in placed as to what entails a need for embryonic surgery versus a want, I think this developing research could be very beneficial to the prevention of life long adversities.
jessicametzinger · February 7, 2016 at 8:26 pm
I took human genetics (BIO 302) last quarter and we talked a lot about the concern about the development of “designer babies.” I think that there is a fine line between how much it is ethical to genetically modify an embryo. If it is for useful purposes, like IVF as mentioned in the article above, then I don’t see a problem with it. However, if it becomes possible in the future to change certain genes to enhance appearance or personality, so that parents can choose exactly what their children will be like, that seems unethical to me. But, from what I’ve heard about the current aims of genetically modifying embryos, it doesn’t seem like there is much research aiming to do that. I feel that as of right now, anyone changing an embryo’s genes is doing it for ethical purposes.
annaliseconroy · February 14, 2016 at 11:02 pm
There are so many great topics in this post and many controversial topics regarding science, but what sticks out to me is exactly what the two comments above discuss: The possibility of “designer babies”. I am extremely against the manipulation of DNA and traits and the picking and choosing of particular traits. This can also be compared to babies born with ambiguous genitalia and the pressure put on the parents to “assign” a gender to the newborn. Many people who grow up and have had their gender chosen for them have said they did not want that gender. I bring that back to the concept of selecting various traits. The parents will always have to live with the idea that they “build” their child, and if the child struggles with their traits and knows they are this way because their parents chose to make them this way, I think it brings a whole host of psychological problems.
Laura Freberg · February 15, 2016 at 10:08 am
Hi, Anna.
I have to agree–we’re stumbling into uncharted ethical waters here. I can definitely buy into the use of genetic technologies to avoid diseases like Huntington’s and cystic fibrosis, but choosing blue eyes for your child because you like blue eyes is a bit “off,” IMHO.
hannahdavis · April 12, 2016 at 3:34 pm
I praise the idea of using modified embryos purely to reduce miscarriages, infertility, and debilitating genetic disorders. Every woman should be able to have a child if she wants one and every child deserves to be born without a genetic disorder impacting their whole life. However modifying genetics creates an idea of designing a baby exactly how you want it. Since every part of a child is impacted by genetics, there are endless results of what the parents could design like physical appearances and possibly personality or temperament. There is a major ethical problem with this since later it could cause many psychological problems; especially if the parent sees the child as something they didn’t want. For example, I read an article in PSY 256 about a girl who grew up in a male favored culture. She only survived in utero because the doctor lied and said she was a boy. Growing up she was never wanted or appreciated and nothing she accomplished was ever recognized. If boys were always chosen as the gender in this culture, the population would become more and more disproportionate in gender and overall would reduce the amount of women available to reproduce. This could be the genocide of women if parents were allowed to choose something like gender. These genetic technologies need to be heavily watched and regulated in order to keep genetic variability and ethics a priority.
michellesandler · April 17, 2016 at 9:18 pm
Aging is something that everyone will experience at some point in their life. Many people perceive aging as a negative part of their life. After reading the article on how one’s attitude toward aging can affect both their mental and physical health, I think this is a topic that needs to be discussed more and people must be informed about more. Prior to reading this article, I didn’t know how much of an impact one’s attitude can make on cognitive abilities and health conditions. I definitely think that interventions should be more common and available for people that discuss these negative effects. This would help reduce the harmful effects that attitude plays in aging and would help people create a positive attitude towards this natural and unavoidable process.
estrickf · April 23, 2016 at 2:01 pm
Regarding the article, “Genetic manipulations in human embryos” the manipulation of genes in human embryos should be closely monitored as it is becoming more and more popular in the science field. Very soon, many individuals will need to make the decision to support or oppose genetic manipulation in human embryos. Although it may be interesting to study and work with this new technology, I think it passes too many barriers of human rights. If this becomes a reality, error is bound to happen and no individual’s life should be dependent on those that are experimenting. No matter what advantages stem from this sort of manipulation, each human cell was made with its unique DNA and the risk of altering their personality or behavior later on in life is too high.
hsaner · April 26, 2016 at 10:49 am
The “Maternal Obesity” article was fascinating and unexpected to what I had previously thought. The evidence supporting that mothers who are obese during pregnancy have almost twice the odds of having a child with autism as women who weigh less, and that when women are both obese and have diabetes, the autism risk for their child is at least quadrupled, was something I had never heard. Because those with autism spectrum disorder are likely to be born preterm and at a low birth weight, I would have thought there would be a relationship between low mother weights, perhaps underweight mothers and children with ASD, but clearly that is not the case. This is the second article I’ve read about showing the (usually negative) effects of mother’s actions of fetal development (the first being the effect of smoking), and it’s a little crazy to think how easy it is to affect your kid before he/she’s even born!
annahempill · May 22, 2016 at 8:50 pm
I read the article “Researchers confirm attitude to aging can have a direct effect on health” and found myself intrigued by the study. I was alarmed at how much of a negative mental and physical toll a specific mindset can have on a person. I could understand why having a bad outlook on aging could have negative affects on mental health, but was surprised to read that it has negative cognitive affects too. I also think this article provides evidence to how powerful the mind and an outlook on life can be to impact physical abilities such as walking. I think the media has a big role in causing people to view aging negatively because of how it portrays older people. If we can understand the negative affects that come along with a negative mindset, I think we could work toward changing the stigma about old age.
annahempill · May 22, 2016 at 9:04 pm
I read the article “Study examines age-related changes in the willingness to take risks” and was not very shocked by he results of the study. The article talked about how the likelihood of risk taking decreased with age. It also talked about how there is a decrease in likelihood of risk taking typically around the twenties and then also an increase in risk taking around 65. This made sense to me because around the twenties is typically when people settle down to get married and have kids, so they wouldn’t take as many risks. Also, 65 is typical retirement age so it makes sense that people around that age would want to take risks and do things they have always wanted to try before they get “too old” or die.
bailey_arthur · May 31, 2016 at 3:35 pm
In the article about risk-takers and risk taking, I had a stereotype of mine disproven. I had often associated older people with less risk taking, which is based on some fact, but there is also changes around age 65 and so on. This came as a surprise to me because I cannot see my parents at age 65 taking risks because as of now they are very safe and cautious people. However, I suppose with retirement age around that period of time and both kids (hopefully) having stable job, they will have more room to make recreational risks and occupational risks. As a young adult, I know that I have my parents to fall back on if I make mistakes in taking risks in my recreational and occupational life; however, I know that will fade away and I will have to become more cautious. As the burden of those risks fall more on me, I understand why I will become more cautious. It was also interesting that social risks do not change throughout the life span. I would think that because adults are less self-conscious as a whole, they would actually be more willing to take social risks. I would like to see the differences between the risks that young adults take and people beyond the age of 65 and see if they have significant differences.
hannahdavis · May 31, 2016 at 7:25 pm
I read the article “Maternal Obesity, Diabetes, tied to increased autism risk in kids”. I had never heard this correlation before however, it makes sense and should be more well known. I think maternal health and nutrition is often overlooked for different disorders in children especially related to mental health. Most mental disorders are caused by a problem in hormone production or regulation. The development of the brain as a fetus is so rapid and intricate if not every aspect of the environment (especially the hormone levels) isn’t right there could be major consequences. It’s really sad that the obesity rate is increasing in the US as this may increase the rate of autism as well. It is really important that future mother’s put their health as a priority to ensure that the environment they provide for that fetus is as healthy and pure as can be.
lwickwir · June 1, 2016 at 2:56 pm
I read about developing a positive attitude towards attitude and completely agree that people view aging as something that’s horrible. It’s not. People have problems seeing the positive aspects to every point in life. Being young and good-looking isn’t everything unless you’re superficial. When you get older you find out who you are, get a family, and so much more. Who cares if you don’t look as great as you did 20 years ago? That was then, and this is now. Be happy with whatever age you are and live in that moment.
hsaner · June 2, 2016 at 3:25 pm
The article “Develop a positive attitude on aging” really confirms the old adage “You’re only as old as you feel”. The fact that older adults with negative attitudes towards aging had slower walking speed and worse cognitive abilities compared to older adults with more positive attitudes towards aging over a period of two years shows how powerful the mind truly is. The article can also prove to people who think the mind and body are two completely separate entities that the two are very intertwined and deeply involved with each other. I have a relatively young dad, who is not even 50, and he’s constantly complaining about how old he is; he also has some minor health issues, and it would be interesting to see how these two variables affect each other. Are the health issues causing him to think he’s old or is his age causing the health issues? It is probably a mix of both, but I’ll be sure to tell him to think positive so that any future aging problems are less severe.
kaylabakhshi · June 5, 2016 at 11:34 am
In “risk taking and risk-takers” it talks about how women tend to have less risk-taking behavior. This makes sense because we innately are the ones who need to survive in order to produce. Animal-istically, without women, the world doesn’t thrive, so that’s why in hunter-gatherer societies and such, women tend to take less “risk-taking” jobs and such. Also, it makes sense that the more of an extrovert someone is, the more they are willing to take a risk. Although, I would like to know what parts of the brain exactly are in charge of such things. I would guess the amygdala because of fear would play a part.
kaylabakhshi · June 5, 2016 at 1:22 pm
RE: develop a positive attitude on changing
In developmental psych, I learned a lot about ageism and how having an open, positive mind about old age can help both the elderly now and when you become older. Society and social media have really bad thoughts about old age, when a lot of older people are actually happiest in life. We talked a lot about mind-set and if you are open to growing older then your cognitive abilities will not decrease as much! Very interesting how powerful the mind is.
mariecote · November 6, 2016 at 12:28 pm
I read the article about aging and positive attitudes. I think it’s all too easy to forget about and overlook the geriatric population. I think this problem is correlated to negative views of aging. It’s amazing how just thinking in a more positive way about aging can help us maintain a certain level of health mentally, and especially physically. I don’t think that our government institutions, or our communities do a very good job taking care of people as they grow older. As the article mentions, interventions would be a good step in the right direction for changing peoples’ attitudes about old age. And because a decline in physical ability is somewhat inevitable with aging, this makes it even more important for society to paint aging in a positive rather than negative light. Elderly people with limitations may be more prone to having negative views about aging, making it an issue society needs to address. Aging is a natural part of life, so it is time we stop dreading it and embrace it with a more positive attitude!
LaurenTaylor · December 6, 2016 at 8:06 pm
After reading the article about developing a positive attitude on aging, I definitely want to maintain a positive view of aging my whole life. I mean in reality, there is really nothing we can do to prevent aging from happening. The article stated that having a negative view of aging can actually impact your cognitive function. I find that so interesting how your thoughts/perception can affect your cognitive abilities as you age. It seems to be a self-fulfilling prophecy, in which you have a negative view of aging and you associate aging with losing skills and function, and so you end up losing those skills and function as a result of your mindset.
kmmenden · February 17, 2017 at 3:16 pm
I read the article on attitude and aging. I think it’s fascinating that having a positive or negative attitude on aging can actually affect how you age! We all have learned that positive thinking (or a positive mental attitude) can actually be beneficial in whatever it is you’re doing. When I ran cross country in high school, we always talked about have a positive attitude towards our races – and a lot of times that did end up helping! I’m not surprised that thinking positively of aging can actually help you age more gracefully. What wonderful news for us who want to age well! All we need to do is think positive thoughts.