Epigenetics and Education

This article on genetics and learning evaluates the connection between genetics and educational attainment. Educational attainment is the highest level of education completed by an individual. The author finds that the mental processes needed for learning are often genetic in nature. He directly challenges previous held idea about education and development stating:

"Children are not a simple tabula rasa, as once thought, since they are conditioned by their genome to an extent. The environment...is also a significant factor which can allow them to make the most of their capabilities..."

Genetics play a big role in who we become in every aspect of our lives. This, however, does not mean we are bound to it. Oddly enough, our environment is also not capable of completely masking or rewriting the traits we enter the world with. As far as education goes, genetics are the tools we begin our journey with, but our environment has the ability to sharpen or dull them. This author advocates for further research into the neurological functions behind learning and environmental impact on education Together these studies can be used to create flexable and personalized learning plans that improve student outcomes. On the opposite end of the spectrum, I believe it can be used to identify outdated and potentially harmful teaching practices.

Overall, I believe this information is very important to America and the world as a whole. Many people are unhappy with their schools systems, each having unique problems that can interfere with a students learning abilities. For example:

Do standardized tests contribute more to high achievement or competition and surface level engagement?

How has Americas history with school shooters changed the average students attitude towards school environments and education?

Gen Z is notoriously called lazy and uneducated, but is that the truth or do they no longer seek educational attainment in favor of more basic needs?

Hopefully, we will have the answers to some of our education questions in the near future and the ability to make the needed changes for everyones best interest!

Genetic Modification caused by Electric Eels.

 Electroporation is a phenomenon where electricity is used to open up small temporary pores within cells.  The purpose of this is to deliver medicine, DNA, bacteria or whatever desired substance into cells in a way that won't destroy the cells.  Since electricity is the basis of this process, scientists in Japan wondered if electric eels could cause the same effect of electroporation in other living organisms.  To test this, zebra fish larvae were put into a tank with an electric eel.  DNA with a gene that would make the fish glow green was put into the tank.  The eel was fed a goldfish, which caused it to emit 185-volt pulses into the water.  A day after, some of the fish larvae started to glow, which lasted for about 3-7 days.  This affected 5% of the larvae, and it suggests that electric eels are able to cause electroporation.  However since this was done in a lab, it's not definitive that this effect occurs out in the wild.

The phenomenon described in this article reminds me of the electrophoresis lab.  In that lab electricity was used to transport genetic material across a medium, using the slight negative charge of DNA to move it towards a more positively charged source.  Electroporation is similar but it involves the process of opening up cells in order to take up a desired substance.  The article suggested that electric eels may cause genetic modification and diversity.  However it concedes that the scientists who conducted the experiment can't conclusively say that because the experiment was done in a lab.  Genetic modification due to electric eels hasn't been observed out in nature to my knowledge.  I personally don't understand electricity too well and how shocks from an electric eel would affect its surrounding area.  But I know that when these eels use electricity, it's usually with the purpose of killing some nearby animal that they're defending themselves from or trying to hunt.  So while the experiment suggests the eels may cause electroporation leading to DNA take up, I doubt it's very common due an organism being killed by the eel by being too close to it.

Article: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/eels-can-genetically-modify-nearby-fish-with-their-electrical-pulses-180983422/

Article about electroporation: https://www.technologynetworks.com/cell-science/articles/an-introduction-to-electroporation-a-tool-for-transfection-and-competent-cell-generation-363195

Research Finds Shared DNA Signature of Identical Twins

Identical siblings are used to sharing a lot with their twin, including their DNA. But new research suggests that they also share a distinct marker of their twin status, not encoded within their DNA, but rather on it. This marker is found within the epigenome, consisting of chemical tags along the DNA that regulate gene activity without changing the genetic sequence. Researchers discovered that identical twins universally exhibit a common set of these markers, which remains consistent from birth through adulthood. 

The shared epigenetic markers can help identify individuals who were conceived as identical twins but lost their sibling in the womb or were separated at birth. This research lays the groundwork for understanding the process of monozygotic twinning, which remains a mystery despite its long-standing fascination. Identical twins form when a fertilized egg splits into two embryos, a process with unknown triggers. Jenny van Dongen, an epigeneticist at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, says the biological process that generates twins “is an enigma.”

During early development, both twins and non-twins undergo numerous epigenetic changes that activate or deactivate genes as the embryo forms. Some of these changes might explain minor distinctions between identical twins. So to better understand what makes a zygote split to form identical twins, “it makes sense to look at epigenetics,” van Dongen says.

By analyzing over 450,000 genomic sites in nearly 6,000 monozygotic and dizygotic twins, they compared identical twins with fraternal ones, eliminating influences from shared womb experiences. They identified 834 spots where identical twins exhibited remarkable similarity in epigenetic marks, particularly in centromere and telomere regions and near genes governing early developmental processes, like cell adhesion regulation. The health implications of these differences remain uncertain. These shared epigenetic patterns were consistent across twins of various ages and geographical locations- and even in different cell types. The researchers developed a test with an 80 percent accuracy rate to identify identical twins, including those affected by vanishing twin syndrome or separated at birth.

“This is a very, very important finding that opens up a lot of avenues of inquiry,” says Segal, the developmental psychologist. For example, identical twins are predisposed for a variety of conditions, from left-handedness to certain congenital disorders such as spina bifida, where the spine fails to develop properly. Perhaps, for some portion of people, these conditions stem from being an unknown identical twin, she says. 

Genetic research, and quite frankly all research, regarding twins always seems so interesting! It's quite cool how twins have piqued interest across cultures and traditions throughout history- and it’s even cooler to see how science develops deeper into understanding twins and the biological mechanisms behind it. 

Sources: 

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-25583-7

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/identical-twin-siblings-common-set-chemical-markers-dna-epigenetics

The Genetics Behind Pigeon Backflips

Did you know that at least 5 genes are involved in making parlor roller pigeons do backflips?

Tumbler pigeons, selectively bred for their tumbling behavior, exhibit intermittent somersaulting episodes during flight, with some birds known as rollers showing multiple somersaults. While they typically regain control quickly, collisions during tumbling can lead to severe injuries or fatalities, termed as "rolldown" by owners. 

The Parlor tumbler breed is an extreme case where birds tumble as soon as they try to fly.In this breed, selection for tumbling has resulted in strains that can no longer fly, but which tumble as soon as they intend to take wing. 

Atoosa Samni, a student at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, joined Micheal Shapiro’s lab to investigate the phenomenon of why some pigeons (Columba livia) do backward somersaults. 

 Many Persian poems say the pigeons perform the acrobatics because the birds are happy, but Samani says the truth is darker. “This is definitely a movement disorder, and it does not have any good aspects to it,” she says. The disorder is progressive, appearing soon after hatching and gradually getting worse until the birds can’t fly.

Samani is homing in on the genes behind the backflips. At least five genes are involved in the behavior, she reported March 7 at the Allied Genetics Conference in National Harbor, Md.

Samani's research on pigeon tumbling reveals it to be a recessive trait, confirmed by breeding experiments. By breeding racing Homer pigeons with parlor rollers; none of the hybrid offspring rolled. Samani revealed when hybrid birds were bred together, about 4 out of 10 of the offspring did somersaults when forced to fly.

Samani identified five large DNA regions encompassing hundreds of genes but found no mutations directly linked to tumbling. Analyzing gene activity in the brains of parlor rollers compared to non rolling pigeons revealed nearly 2,000 genes with varying activity levels. Despite narrowing down her search to around 300 candidate genes associated with tumbling, the specific genes responsible remain unidentified.

The article itself gives more of a background into Samani and how she got introduced to genetics in Iran where she is from. It's quite remarkable and full circle to see the evolution of her interests, from studying pigeon colors in a small city  to delving into the genetic and neurological aspects of pigeon behavior by analyzing brain activity levels. I look forward to following both her current research on birds and her future endeavors in the field of genetics.

Sources:

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/why-roller-pigeons-backflip-bird-animal

https://www.ufaw.org.uk/birds/pigeons-rolling-and-tumbling

Cuckoo Plumage Morphs Giving Them an Edge for Reproduction.

This article discusses the color morphisms seen in female cuckoos. Cuckoo birds are known for their brood parasitic; That is they lay the eggs in the nests of other species of birds and trick those birds into raising their young. A very different strategy, is parenting really that hard?? 

   

Besides the cuckoos having mimicry abilities with the color of their eggs resembling the hosts species eggs, the females also have a color morphism in their plumage. Some are grey, as seen in the picture above on the left, and others are rofous (reddish). As you can you see, the grey morphs closely resemble sparrowhawks, which prey on smaller birds. This "hawk costume" allows the cuckoo to spook other birds out of their nest and come in and lay their eggs. Some birds have picked up on the grey morphs tricks, and can identify it is a non threat when approaching, complicating the cuckoos parasitic plan.

The rufous variety does not have this mimicry advantage, but perhaps it benefits by being less familiar. The chromose containing these plumage variants is on the W chromosome, a sex chromosome only found in female birds. So only females can have these color varients. The males are also grey, this gives the rufous morphs a advantage in being rarer and less recognizable by other birds.The bottom line, species having different color morphs, with one having a mimicry aspect and one does not, may benefit the species as a whole. This gives scientist a point of interest to study selection and how it oscillates under unique conditions.

Mimicry has always fascinated me, and this is no exception. The cuckoo bird has such a unique reproduction strategy, how can you not marvel? Maybe the birds that raise cuckoos unknowingly, actually are just super excited to have a cuckoo foster. 

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/04/240424160236.htm

https://phys.org/news/2024-04-evolutionary-biologists-variants-female-cuckoos.html

Posted by Michael Breslin