Category Archives: Genetics

Genetics

World Cancer Day: Going back to the basics The genetics of cancer – Firstpost

We have all heard of the term gene and DNA, but little do we know about the impact of changes in them known commonly as genetic mutations. Most cancers are associated with these changes in specific genes which are sub-units of the genetic material, DNA. In this era of modern medicine & treatment, certain genetic mutations have been identified to be responsible for several diseases including cancer and targeting such mutations play a major role in the overall management of the disease, to improve the quality of the life and cure.

In the past two decades, there has been an increasing number of cancer cases in India. According to the Globocan 2018 data, about 1.16 million new cancer cases in India were reported with close to 7.9 lakh deaths. In India, the cancer subtypes in descending order are breast cancer (14 percent), lip/oral cavity cancers (10.4 percent), cervical cancer (8.4 percent), lung cancer (5.9 percent) and stomach cancer (5 percent) followed by others.

Most cancers are associated with changes in specific genes which are sub-units of the genetic material DNA.

The question that arises that How genetic testing would help in understanding genetic mutation and its relation to cancer/s? The simple answer to this question is, whatever one asks for. Genetic testing provides varied answers, starting from predisposition, and events before onset of cancer to treatment planning and monitoring as well as detection of early relapse/recurrence.

How can the genetic information related to cancer, be decoded even before the cancer onset? Well, the presence of certain gene mutations increases the chances of developing cancers drastically. These cancers are known as hereditary cancers, and the process is known as hereditary risk assessment. Understanding genetic mutations can help one understand whether there are increased chances of developing cancer. For example, any woman is at a 12 percent lifetime risk of developing breast cancer, in general population, but if there is a presence of harmful BRCA1 mutation, in a given individual due to inheritance, this risk can go as high as 70 percent.

Once cancer has developed, there are various ways in which these genetics tests can prove handy. Understanding genetic mutations can help the oncologist diagnose and differentially diagnose cancer subtypes in a more informed manner. Further certain genetic mutations help in understanding if the cancer progression will be aggressive or not. For example, in case of a leukaemia subtype: chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL), the presence of IGHV gene mutation indicates that cancer wont progress aggressively. In medical terms it is known as good prognosis. On the other hand, there are some gene mutations that indicate poor prognosis of cancer as well.

Coming to the most known of application of genetic testing, we all have heard of what is called targeted treatment. Presence of certain gene mutations help the oncologists target the cancer as far as treatment is concerned. For example, in lung cancer, there are various classes of drugs that are based on gene mutations, such as EGFR inhibitors, which have a better effect on EGFR mutated lung cancers.

Certain genetic mutations help in understanding if the cancer progression will be aggressive or not.

Other applications of genetic testing include assessment of the treatment response for a given drug, also to detect the early recurrence in a periodic manner by a non-invasive procedure to check for cancer-specific mutations in the plasma of the blood sample, also known as liquid biopsy testing

Like all other subjects, cancer genetics is also something where India has certain unique features. There are multiple research papers that mention that in lung cancer, the prevalence of EGFR mutations is higher in south-Asian, particularly Indian population, as compared to the western populations. This provides an added advantage of treating these patients with targeted therapy for killing the specific cancer cells, thus avoiding the side effects associated with conventional chemotherapy. Hence understanding the mutation status of EGFR gene becomes imperative in case of lung cancers.

Similarly, there is a subclass of breast cancer called triple-negative breast cancers (TNBC), where there is an absence of receptors known to fuel breast cancer growth- Estrogen, Progesterone and Her-2/Neu gene. This is one of the most aggressive subtypes of breast cancer, where there are to targeted therapies available so far, and the standard of care remains conventional chemo-radiotherapy/surgery. Considering its aggressive behaviour the recurrence rates are very high in this subtype of cancers, and nearly 20 percent of these women are BRCA1/BRCA2 mutation carriers. As far as India is concerned, the triple-negative breast cancers incidence is higher in India (30 percent) as compared to the western population (12-17 percent), and have a poorer prognosis and survival (60 percent: 5 years age-adjusted survival) as compared to the Caucasian population (80 percent: 5 year age adjusted survival).

Talking about BRCA1 mutated breast cancers, one particular mutation, DelAG, is considered to be founder mutation in Ashkenazi Jewish community. Founder mutations is when a genetic alteration is observed with high frequency in a group that is or was geographically or culturally isolated, in which one or more of the ancestors was a carrier of the altered gene. In our experience, we have seen this founder mutation in Indian sub-population as well over and above Ashkenazi Jewish community.

In conclusion, genetic testing is aimed at providing clarity and insights about a persons cancer to the Oncologists that helps them make an informed decision. An increasing number of Oncologists have adopted genetic testing as an important tool for diagnosis and treatment planning of cancer and its management. Our constant effort is aimed to ensure, maximum number of cancer patients get benefitted by this technology in the society.

Dr Vidya Veldore is a principal scientist for Oncology at MedGenome Labs Ltd.

Updated Date: Feb 04, 2020 17:32:40 IST

Tags :Cancer,Cancer Day. World Cancer Day 2019,Cancer Patients,Diagnosis Of Cancer,DNA,Gene Mutations,Genes,Genetics Of Cancer,Genetics Tests,Oncologists,Oncology,Types Of Cancer,World Cancer Day

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World Cancer Day: Going back to the basics The genetics of cancer - Firstpost

Genetics

Adam Rutherford: taking on racism with the help of genetics – Times Higher Education (THE)

There were several reasons why geneticist Adam Rutherford, an honorary research fellow at UCL, felt the time was right to publish a book titled How to Argue with a Racist.

One was a political climate, in Britain and beyond, where nationalism appears to be on the rise. There were signs even in the way people now responded to hisown heritage.

A couple of years ago, he told Times Higher Education, my Wikipedia page was changed to describe me as a British Indo-Guyanese scientist. While that is effectively accurate, I have never described myself as such and have no Indian or Guyanese cultural input. I think of myself as from Ipswich.

Furthermore, a huge recent rise in genetics ancestry kits has had the effect of reinforcing some ideas about biological essentialism which we were trying to erase from genetics,added the science broadcaster, whose media appearances include his position as presenter of BBC Radio 4'sInside Science.

There were also factors relating to Dr Rutherfords own discipline and institution. When he arrived at UCL at the age of 18 as a student, he writes, he was enrolled in the Galton Laboratory, which was once called the Galton Eugenics Laboratory, and was taught by the Galton professor in the Galton Lecture Theatre.

My entire field of human genetics is based primarily on the work of Francis Galton, Dr Rutherford said, and thus on a science built by racists in order to demonstrate the racial superiority of white men. It was through setting up the National Eugenics Laboratory at UCL that Galton laid the foundations for what is now the genetics department that I am still a member of, he continued.

Although Dr Rutherford felt no ambiguity about saying that Galton was a scientific genius: much of genetics, statistics and behavioural psychology is built on the work which he did in the late-19thand early 20th century, he was also unequivocally racist. A UCL inquiry, looking into the connections with eugenics of Galton, mathematician Karl Pearson and Egyptologist Flinders Petrie, should announce its findings soon.

Genetics, in Dr Rutherfords view, has now fortunately put its past behind it and is indeed a crucial tool in the battle against racism. There is now a vanishingly small number of geneticists and evolutionary biologists who [dispute] that genetics has clearly demonstrated that race is not a biologically meaningful categorisation, he said. It was a beautiful irony that the science built by Galton on racist premises had also proved to be the science which demonstrates the fallacy of his ideas.

Yet, as someone who constantly engages with the public, Dr Rutherford was well aware of a massive disconnect between what we are saying within the walls of the academy and what people think. His book is designed to provide ammunition to challenge the views not only of hard-line white supremacists, but also your slightly racist uncle and even basically well-intentioned people who say black people are better at sport or Jews are better at intellectual pursuits.

In addressing some of the common assumptions about race, Dr Rutherford started with the broad point that literally everybody is descended from everybody else.

He continued: We are really bad at understanding how family trees actually work. After a few generations, they become enormously matted webs. There are no pure ancestries, no pure lineages.

Yet it remained true, Dr Rutherford admitted, that nobody has seen a white man in the final of the 100-metre sprint in the Olympics since 1980. So what could be said to people who point to such facts and claim that they reveal, as Dr Rutherford put it, a natural ability among those descended from the enslaved to be good at explosive-energy sports?

If that argument was right, he said, where are such people in sprint cycling or swimming, which has featured one African American in the history of the Olympics? Similar arguments could be used against those who attributed the striking presence of Jews among composers and performers of classical music to innate talent, while ignoring cultural factors and other genres such as hip hop and jazz.

Even whensuch notions were seemingly used in a positive sense, Dr Rutherford went on, we must keep in mind links to a long history of offensive stereotyping.

He pointed, for example, to a study looking at several thousand comments in the media about elite athletic success. These referred to innate physical abilities for a black athlete and hard work, intelligence and industriousness for a white elite athlete. Such stereotypes are just baked into our culture.

Adam Rutherfords How to Argue with a Racist: History, Science, Race, and Realityis published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson on 6 February.

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Adam Rutherford: taking on racism with the help of genetics - Times Higher Education (THE)

Genetics

Terrace Global Announces Genetics Supply Agreement With Apollo Green for Acquisition of Genetics and Importation Into the European Union – Yahoo…

Highlights:

Terrace Global Inc. ("Terrace Global" or the "Company") (TSXV:TRCE) is pleased to announce that it has entered into a genetics supply agreement (the "Genetics Supply Agreement") with Apollo Green Inc. ("Apollo Green") whereby the parties have entered into an exclusive relationship with respect to the acquisition and importation of high-THC genetics for the Companys medical cannabis operations in Portugal.

Terrace Global has commenced the process to acquire the requisite starting materials for the first phase of its greenhouse facilities in Portugal, which will be comprised of approximately 65,000 square feet of greenhouse facilities, a 5,000 square feet of E.U. GMP processing and drying facility and a 3,300 square feet administrative building.

Pursuant to the Genetics Supply Agreement, Terrace Global will be acquiring the following genetics: Chem Stallion (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD), Twisted Grape (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD) and Apollo Skunk (15-25% THC, 0.5-0.1% CBD). These genetics will add to Terrace Globals existing inventory of high CBD genetics which were acquired from Colorado and used in its outdoor cultivation in Uruguay.

"We are pleased to be working with Apollo Green to develop our genetics inventory with a view to focusing on high-THC strains that we expect to be well received by the European Union medical cannabis market participants. Apollo Green has an extensive library of genetics that include a diverse set of market leading strains and cross-breeds," commented Francisco Ortiz von Bismarck, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. "Being able to source these genetics is an important milestone in the development of European operations. Without quality genetics, there is no pathway to success in the burgeoning E.U. medical cannabis industry."

Apollo Green has been accumulating an extensive library of high-THC genetics and has benefited from its relationship with Ed Rosenthal. Mr. Rosenthal is a Global Advisor to Apollo Green and is a leading cannabis horticulture authority, author, educator, social activist and legalization pioneer.

"Terrace Global is building a world-class cultivation facility in one of the most attractive countries from a regulatory and climate perspective. We will be working closely with the Company to see how these genetics perform by leveraging our extensive cultivation expertise," commented Tyler LeBlanc, Chief Executive Officer of Apollo Green. "This is a meaningful partnership for us as we seek to grow our genetics and plantlet business globally. Terrace Global is the ideal partner given its extensive experience and international footprint in Uruguay, Portugal and Spain."

The Genetics Supply Agreement is subject to various conditions precedent, including the issuance of the applicable export and import permits from the regulatory authorities in Canada and Portugal.

About Terrace Global

Terrace Global is a multi-country operator (MCO) led by experienced cannabis entrepreneurs focused on the development and acquisition of international cannabis assets. Terrace Globals focus is on federally legal jurisdictions with existing domestic demand, low cost inputs and approved for exportation. Terrace Globals existing asset platform consists of: (1) a 33.75% indirect equity interest in one of the currently two recreational cannabis operations in Uruguay; (2) 100% of Oransur, S.A., a Uruguayan company producing high CBD hemp in Uruguay; (3) 100% of Terra Nova Produo e Comercializao de Produtos Natuis e Farmacuticos, Lda, a Portuguese company with a pre-license issued by INFARMED for the cultivation, importation, and exportation of medical cannabis in Portugal; and (4) 100% of Pharmabinoide S.L., a Spanish company producing and commercializing hemp in Spain. MariMed Inc. (OTCQX:MRMD), a multi-state cannabis operator in the U.S., dedicated to improving the health and wellness of people through the use of cannabinoids and cannabis products, owns approximately 6% of Terrace Global.

About Apollo Green

Apollo Green was among the first wave of Canadian businesses to submit an application to Health Canada for a cannabis cultivation and sales license. In July 2019, Apollo Green was granted three licenses for standard cultivation, standard processing and federal medical sales. Apollo Green currently supplies premium genetic solutions and superior plantlets to Cannabis producers globally, specializing in reducing risk, space, costs, and time to its B2B customers, in a state of the art fully operational facility about 20 minutes east of downtown Ottawa.

Story continues

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, statements about the Companys future plans and intentions. Wherever possible, words such as "may", "will", "should", "could", "expect", "plan", "intend", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict" or "potential" or the negative or other variations of these words, or similar words or phrases, have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect managements current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management as at the date hereof.

Forward-looking statements involve significant risk, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully and readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure readers that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20200129005855/en/

Contacts

Terrace Global Inc.Francisco Ortiz von Bismarck, CEO and Directorinfo@terraceglobal.ca http://www.terraceglobal.ca

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Terrace Global Announces Genetics Supply Agreement With Apollo Green for Acquisition of Genetics and Importation Into the European Union - Yahoo...

Genetics

A Court Tried To Force Ancestry.com To Open Up Its DNA Database To Police. The Company Said No. – BuzzFeed News

Ancestry.com, the largest DNA testing company in the world, was served a search warrant to give police access to its database of some 16 million DNA profiles, but the company did not comply.

Ancestry received one request seeking access to Ancestrys DNA database through a search warrant, the company revealed in its 2019 transparency report released last week. Ancestry challenged the warrant on jurisdictional grounds and did not provide any customer data in response.

The warrant came from a court in Pennsylvania, the company told BuzzFeed News by email, adding: The warrant was improperly served on Ancestry and we did not provide any access or customer data in response. Ancestry has not received any follow up from law enforcement on this matter.

For months, legal experts who follow investigative genetic genealogy have expected search warrants to be issued to Ancestry and its main competitor, 23andMe, which has about 10 million DNA profiles in its database. Both companies have publicly vowed to defend their customers genetic privacy, and say they will fight efforts to open up their databases to searches by police.

Investigative genetic genealogy is a new method used to solve crimes. It involves searching for genetic profiles that partially match DNA from crime scenes and then building family trees from these relatives to find a suspect. Until now, only two databases used by genealogy enthusiasts to research their family histories GEDmatch, originally set up by hobbyists but now owned by the forensic genetics company Verogen, and the database run by FamilyTreeDNA have been open to search requests from police.

Finding criminal suspects through genetic genealogy is a numbers game: The more profiles you have to search, the more likely you are to find a reasonably close relative.

GEDmatch contains about 1.3 million profiles and Family Tree DNA has around 1.1 million. So if cops were to gain access to the much larger databases operated by Ancestry or 23andMe, it would make solving cases much easier.

After the April 2018 arrest in California of Joseph James DeAngelo, alleged to be the infamous Golden State Killer, there was a boom in investigative genealogy. But in May 2019, cops hit a partial roadblock when GEDmatch announced that its users would have to opt in to make their profiles visible to searches by the police. Only about 1 in 6 users have since done so.

At that time, Paul Holes, a retired investigator with the Contra Costa County district attorney's office, who led the team that solved the Golden State Killer case, said he expected warrants would be issued to search GEDmatchs database and to access the genetic data held by the larger companies.

Of course there are going to be legal battles, Holes told BuzzFeed News. It would not surprise me, years down the road, if this could be a US Supreme Court issue.

Holes' predictions have so far proved spot on. In October, the New York Times revealed that a homicide detective with the Orlando Police Department had obtained a warrant to search GEDmatch, which quickly complied. Ancestrys new transparency report reveals that the big companies are now under pressure to open up their databases too.

23andMe told BuzzFeed News that it had received no warrants to search its database as of the end of 2019. The company is expected to update its own transparency report in the next couple of weeks.

We carefully scrutinize all law enforcement requests, and have never provided any customer information to a law enforcement agency, nor do we share customer data with any public databases or with entities that may increase law enforcement access, 23andMe told BuzzFeed News by email.

MyHeritage, which is based in Israel and has more than 3.75 million DNA profiles in its database, said that it had also not received any warrants to search its database and would similarly fight any that were received. Our position is that MyHeritage does not cooperate with law enforcement, company spokesperson Rafi Mendelsohn told BuzzFeed News.

The coming legal tussles are likely to center on the meaning of probable cause, which historically has meant there is a particular reason to conduct a search to help solve a crime. Arguing that a database containing genetic information on millions of people is so large that it is highly likely to help solve most violent crimes stretches that definition, some legal experts argue.

If statistical probability standing alone is sufficient to define probable cause, then probable cause is going to be virtually meaningless in an era of big data, Natalie Ram, a legal scholar at the University of Maryland who studies genetic privacy, told BuzzFeed News.

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A Court Tried To Force Ancestry.com To Open Up Its DNA Database To Police. The Company Said No. - BuzzFeed News

Genetics

Gerald Fink awarded the Genetic Society of America’s Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal – MIT News

Gerald R. Fink,Whitehead Institute founding member and former director and professor of molecular genetics in the MIT Department of Biology, has been awarded the 2020 Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal, bestowed by the Genetics Society of America (GSA). The award recognizes a distinguished scientist who has a lifetime achievement in the field of genetics and a strong history as a mentor to fellow geneticists. TheGSA is an international community of more than 5,000 scientists who advance the field of genetics.

Fink, who is also the Herman and Margaret Sokol Professor at Whitehead Institute, is a former GSA president and the 1982 recipient of the GSA Medal. In honoring him with the Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal, GSA is recognizing Finks discovery of principles central to genome organization and regulation in eukaryotic cells.

This year, the Morgan Medal will also be awarded to David Botstein, chief scientific officer for Calico Labs and professor emeritus of molecular biology at the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University, in recognition of his multiple contributions to genetics, including the collaborative development of methods for defining genetic pathways, mapping genomes, and analyzing gene expression.

These awards to Gerry and David are richly deserved and I am so pleased they are being honored together, says Whitehead Institute DirectorDavid Page. Gerry Fink has fundamentally changed the way researchers approach biological problems, and his many discoveries have significantly shaped modern science. David Botstein has helped drive modern genetics, establishing the ground rules for human genetic mapping. Page has worked closely with both men: beginning his research career as an investigator in Botsteins lab, and collaborating with Fink for more than three decades at Whitehead Institute.

The medals will be formally presented to Fink and Botstein at the Allied Genetics Conference in April.

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Gerald Fink awarded the Genetic Society of America's Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal - MIT News

Genetics

Cancer is genetic, early detection can help cure it: Sonali Bendre – Yahoo India News

Nargis Dutt Foundation held awareness event on World Cancer Day in Mumbai. Sonali Bendre took part in the programme. Speaking at the event on cancer she encouraged people to go for early detection if their families have cancer background. "Huge part of cancer is genetics. The more data you have on cancer, the more the doctors can help you. What in India we lack is data. Anyone who has cancer in their family, go and get yourself tested. Most important cancer is curable if detected early. Genetic testing is important," said Sonali Bendre.

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Cancer is genetic, early detection can help cure it: Sonali Bendre - Yahoo India News

Genetics

Environmental Factor – February 2020: Parkinson’s driven by inflammation, genetics, and the environment – Environmental Factor Newsletter

In 1817, James Parkinson published An Essay on the Shaking Palsy, describing the disease that now bears his surname. The British surgeons proposed treatment bloodletting proved ineffective, and the intervening two centuries led to no breakthroughs for patients.

The reality is that today, we still dont have a treatment that slows or alters the progression of Parkinsons disease, said David Standaert, M.D., Ph.D., during a Jan. 8 talk at NIEHS. He is chair of the neurology department at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). We can help patients function better, but were not changing the underlying nature of the disease.

Parkinsons disease is complex, involving genetic and environmental factors, and their interaction. Guohong Cui, M.D., Ph.D., head of the NIEHS In Vivo Neurobiology Group, invited Standaert to discuss the role immunity plays in the disorder. Both researchers seek to discover ways to slow advancement of the condition and make it less severe.

Dr. Standaert is an established researcher in the Parkinsons field, which is one of the major areas my lab works in, said Cui. His team examines how pesticides interact with genetic factors associated with the disease and ways to slow dopamine loss, which is a hallmark of the disorder.

At UAB, Standaert directs the Morris K. Udall Center of Excellence in Parkinsons Disease Research, one of eight such centers funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. One of his research questions is whether immune system responses to a protein called alpha-synuclein trigger neurodegeneration.

Alpha-synuclein is a cornerstone of research in Parkinsons disease, Standaert told the audience. It is a small protein present in high levels in neurons throughout the brain. It participates in virtually every form of the disease, whether through mutation, overexpression, or aggregation, which is probably the most common mechanism.

Abnormal forms of alpha-synuclein may activate immune cells in the brain, leading to inflammation that drives progression of the disorder.

For many years, it was said that this is a degenerative disease and cells are dying, so, of course, theres inflammation, he said. I think in the last few years, weve turned this around and realized that the inflammation may come first, as part of a process that leads to degeneration.

When mutated, the LRRK2 protein can worsen problems caused by alpha-synuclein. It is one of the most common genetic causes of Parkinsons. In our clinic, about 2 to 3 percent of patients have LRRK2 mutations, he noted. Those mutations may cause Parkinsons by cranking up sensitivity of the immune system they may increase the magnitude of the response to alpha-synuclein.

But other factors bear consideration. To study the mechanisms responsible for Parkinsons disease, there is a need for model systems that replicate the effects of environmental toxins, said Standaert. He highlighted research by NIEHS grantee Briana De Miranda, Ph.D., of the University of Pittsburgh. She studies, among other things, how organic solvents may boost susceptibility to Parkinsons disease in individuals with LRRK2 mutations.

Standaert said the fact that inflammation may cause the disorder to advance more than it otherwise would means that anti-inflammatory drugs could hold promise. We have immunologic treatments for a lot of other diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis, and multiple sclerosis, Standaert said in an interview. Could we use one of those or something similar in Parkinsons disease to slow its progression?

(Jesse Saffron, J.D., is a technical writer-editor in the NIEHS Office of Communications and Public Liaison.)

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Environmental Factor - February 2020: Parkinson's driven by inflammation, genetics, and the environment - Environmental Factor Newsletter

Genetics

Genetics and Acne – The Good Men Project

Please Note: This article is presented for informational purposes only and is not meant to diagnose or treat any illness. If you have any health concern, see a licensed healthcare professional in person.

What is acne?

Acne is a chronic, inflammatory skin condition that causes pimples and spots on the face, neck, shoulders, back, and chest. It is the most popular skin condition in the U.S., affecting 50 million Americans every year. It is common during puberty when the sebaceous glands activate. However, there is no specific age when acne occurs. It is worth noting that acne is not dangerous, but it can leave your skin with scars.

Is acne genetics?

One of the common questions you will hear people ask about acne is acne genetic? Well, acne is mainly caused by genetics. Acne is more genetic than environmental. Acne genetics establish how the immune system responds to P. acnes bacteria: one person may develop just mild blackheads, while the other person develops severe gentle and red nodules.

Genetics is also responsible for clogging your pores. For example, a certain family may have a genetic tendency of overproducing dead skin cells, leading to more clogged pores, hence causing acne. Or some family line may have a genetic tendency to overproduce sebum, making the oily skin to trap bacteria in pores, leading to more frequent acne. Additionally, since some types of acne are hormonal, a person may be genetically predisposed to produce more androgen.

What makes acne genetics so devastating is that they are unpredictable. For example, in identical twins, one may get little pimples that disappear after a few days, while the other twin may develop cysts that can scar the skin. Fortunately, you can still clear up your genetic acne.

According to the experts, if your father or mother had significant acne, you have a high possibility of developing genetic acne. Remember that there are also other environmental factors that may influence acne.

How to reduce genetic acne

Fortunately, there are ways that can help you reduce the effects of genetics and keep acne at bay. Even if you are genetically predisposed to breakouts, that doesnt mean that you cant do anything about them, you can still make informed and healthy lifestyle choices to clear up the acne. These are some of the ways you can prevent acne

Inset photo provided by the author.

Featured photo: Shutterstock

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Genetics and Acne - The Good Men Project

Genetics

Do DIY DNA kits revive a harmful perceived link between genetics and race? – Penn: Office of University Communications

The industry around do-it-yourself DNA kits has exploded, with tens of millions of people sending in samples to learn about their family history. But what consumers might consider a lighthearted glimpse into their backgrounds gave Penn sociologist Wendy Roth pause.

When I first heard about genetic ancestry tests, I was concerned. As social scientists, we learn that race is not genetic; its not biological, Roth says. What are these tests that take a DNA sample and report back your race? In the early days, thats how it was being described. They were selling themselves as providing you with the definitive word on your race, ethnicity, and who you are.

Roth and others in the field grew worried that the test results might inadvertently reshape racial boundaries and reinforce an archaic concept called genetic essentialism, which says that genes alone determine race, and that race alone determines a persons abilities. Even before there was any data, social scientists were writing think pieces, saying these tests were going to revive this harmful view, she says. I shared those concerns, but I wanted to answer this question empirically.

The result of that work is laid out in a new paper Roth published in PLOS ONE with colleagues ule Yaylac, Kaitlyn Jaffe, and Lindsey Richardson from the University of British Columbia and the British Columbia Centre on Substance Use. The researchers found that overall, DIY DNA tests did not lead more people to believe that race is purely genetic, but they also learned that genetic tests influence people differently.

For some, it increases their belief in racial essentialism and for others, it decreases that belief. Thats causing the effect to average out, says Roth. What seems to make the biggest difference is how much someone understands about genetics going in.

People who better grasped genetics initially came away from the test more skeptical of this racial construct than when they started. Those who understood genetics less believed in essentialism more following the test. It really seems to be a polarization, she says. For the people who dont understand genetics going into this, their views become more extreme. They take more of a laypersons understanding of what a test like this is able to say. They take it at face value.

Roth had previously conducted qualitative interviews with people who had bought genetic-ancestry tests, which helped her grasp their understanding of their test results. But interviewing people as they received results didnt allow Roth to rigorously analyze the causal effects of such tests. To do this, she designed a randomized control trial focused on non-Hispanic, native-born white Americans.

The study population of 802 people had also never before taken a genetic ancestry test, had no family results from such a test, and, perhaps most crucial, were amenable to taking one. Thats important, she says. This isnt a sample of all whites, or even all non-Hispanic, native-born whites. It really is a sample of people willing to take these tests.

All participants began the process by completing a survey to assess their understanding of the relationship between genes and race. Roth then randomly assigned participants to a control or treatment group. The former took no tests. Those in the latter took two DNA tests, one called an admixture test, which presents a persons background as a pie chart of different ancestries, and a second that follows maternal lineage back thousands of years, tracing a familys migration path around the globe. About eight weeks later, Roth asked these participants to review their results for at least 30 minutes, then take a first-reaction survey. Finally, 11 months after taking the pre-test survey, all participants answered follow-up questions that again asked about their understanding of the link between genetics and race.

Based on those questions, my co-authors and I developed a scale to measure belief in genetic essentialism of race, that your genes determine which racial category you belong to and these are discrete, not overlapping: You are black or white or Asian. Its also a belief that those racial groups determined by your genes determine your abilities, how smart you are, how athletic you are, how good you are at math, Roth explains. I compared the treatment and control groups in the pre- and post-test surveys.

There are people out there buying these tests for fun, as a lark. Theyre not really thinking about the kind of impact that they could have. Wendy Roth, Penn sociologist

According to Roth, the study findings have important implications for the DIY DNA testing industry and for the people who use these kits. Consumers need to understand the limitations of thetests, she says, and to that end, the companies who provide them need to make those limitations clear. There are people out there buying these tests for fun, as a lark, she says. Theyre not really thinking about the kind of impact that they could have, either on themselves or on people they know.

The tests could inadvertently fuel negative or hurtful behavior, too, she adds. We know that attitudes affect behaviors all the time, from voting to social ties to hostility toward neighbors. I dont want to make too much of a logical leap here, but theres a general concern with negative racial animus being on the rise, that its being permitted. The fact that something that seems harmless like a genetic-ancestry test could be potentially fueling those views is concerning.

In the future, Roth says she could see a study that looks at whether improving someones understanding of genetics changes these outcomes. She also hopes to studypopulations besides non-Hispanic, native-born whites, as well as to focus not just on people willing to take these tests but on those who have bought one in the past.

Funding for the research came from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Canada Foundation for Innovation, and Killam Faculty Research Fellowship.

Wendy Roth is an associate professor in the Department of Sociology in the School of Arts and Sciences and a research associate in the Population Studies Center at the University of Pennsylvania.

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Do DIY DNA kits revive a harmful perceived link between genetics and race? - Penn: Office of University Communications

Genetics

Study finds THC rises in hemp due to genetics, not growing conditions – New Food

Researchers from Cornell University studied hemp from two sites to determine whether the difference in growing conditions affected THC levels.

As the hemp industry grows, producers face the risk of cultivating a crop that can become unusable and illegal if it develops too much of the psychoactive chemical THC, according to researchers from Cornell University. The researchers have determined that a hemp plants propensity to go hot become too high in THC is determined by genetics, not as a stress response to growing conditions, which is said to be contrary to popular belief.

[People thought] there was something about how the farmer grew the plant something about the soil, the weather getting too hot, or drought, said Larry Smart, Horticulture Professor and senior author of the study, but our evidence from this paper is that fields go hot because of genetics, not because of environmental conditions.

Smart and his team conducted field trials at two sites, studying the genetics and chemistry of 217 hemp plants. They found that differences in growing conditions between the sites had no significant influence on which chemicals the plants produced. But when they compared the CBD (cannabidiol) and THC levels of each of the plants against their genomes, they found very high correlation between their genetics and the chemicals they produced.

Jacob Toth, first author of the paper and a doctoral student in Smarts lab, developed a molecular diagnostic to demonstrate that the hemp plants in the study fell into one of three genetic categories: plants with two THC-producing genes; plants with two CBD-producing genes; or plants with one gene each for CBD and THC.

To minimise the risk of plants going hot, hemp growers ideally want plants with two CBD-producing genes, the researchers explained.

While conducting the research, the team also discovered that as many as two-thirds of the seeds they obtained of one hemp variety which were all supposed to be low-THC hemp produced THC above legal limits.

The researchers explained that they hope their work will help address this problem by providing breeders with easy-to-use genetic markers that can be utilised much earlier on seedlings and both sexes of plants.

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Study finds THC rises in hemp due to genetics, not growing conditions - New Food