Reply To: In the Genes

[Rick Green – Founder of TotallyADD]

The gene thing is tricky.  The first suspect gene that was identified was DRD4.7, the D stands for Dopamine. (Not sure which D, now that I think about it. Hmm. But one of em does.)

Since then a bunch more have been identified… DRD5, DAT1, 5HTT, HTR1B, and SNAP25 are some of the ones that I’ve seen referenced in various articles. (Maybe someone with some scientific credibility can explain more about genes.)

But the key word that I missed when I first heard experts referring to the genes was ‘suspect’. As in, ‘we suspect it’s part of the cause of ADHD because this gene is switched on in a lot of ADHD people, and not in others.’

Then came the realization, out of the Human Genome project where they mapped the entire human DNA, that there are far fewer genes than they expected, and how the genes are ‘expressed’ is equally important.

Again, can someone else explain this better than me?  Please feel free to add to this.

But from what I understand the same gene can be expressed many ways, like a character in the Chinese alphabet, which might stand for Eat, Submit, Drink, Go Forward, or Receive, depending on how its used, what other characters are around it. And how the gene expresses itself, or what it does, depends on the layer of protein around the outside. (Is this accurate? Man, where’s a Molecular Biologist with a Minor in Genetics when you need one?)

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