Links Between Addictions
Dean Hamer, Director of the Gene Structure and Regulation Unit at the National Cancer Institute, discusses the fact that, "...many different addictions tend to go together." He explains that, "...the probable reason is that there are certain persona...
Sexual Orientation and Genetics (Part Two)
Dean Hamer, Director of the Gene Structure and Regulation Unit at the National Cancer Institute, expands on his discussion of sexual orientation and genetics. Dr. Hamer explains that work with identical twins has provided evidence that, at least in ...
In the Driver's Seat: Sexual Orientation
Although opinions differ as to what determines sexual orientation, most scientists believe that for males it is primarily inborn. Simon LeVay, for example found a cluster of nerve cells in the hypothalamus that is larger in heterosexual males than...
Going to Extremes: Researching the Causes of Schizophrenia
The sources for complex psychiatric disorders like schizophrenia involve looking for contributions from many different gene variants. These gene combinations do not exhibit the cognitive impairment that characterizes the disease until the brain reac...
Codes of Life: Studies of Twins Separated at Birth
In recent years a group of scientists known as behavior geneticists have been probing the relative impact of genetic and environmental influences using twin studies and comparing adoptive and biological siblings with one another. Because twins may...
Alcoholism and Genetics
Dean Hamer, Director of the Gene Structure and Regulation Unit at the National Cancer Institute, observes that alcoholism, "...clearly has some genetic basis because, identical twins, even if they're raised apart, are very similar for this." Dr. Ham...