“Why Are Some Genomes So F***ing Big???”
Good question. And it’s been asked before. Usually this question arises within the context of “What use is a larger genome?” when we consider vast genomes such as the onion […]
Tag Archives: CNV
Preliminary Data: Schizophrenia and Brain-related Genes May Have Higher Mobile Element Content Similar to that Seen in Autism
We recently wrote and submitted a Letter to the Editor of Neuron in response to the recent article by Bundo et al. (2014) reporting increased LINE1 retrotransposition in schizophrenia genomes. […]
Is the Female Brain More Resilient against Harmful Mutations?
It has long been a topic of debate and discussion whether the lop-sided rates of autism diagnosis (males > females) reflects real gender variations in phenotype or simply diagnostic bias. […]
A Mutation that Lowers Risk for Schizophrenia?
Last month, Rees et al. (2014) reported that, in contrast to copy number variant (CNV) deletions at the genetic locus, 22q11, which increase schizophrenia risk, duplications in that same region […]
The Evolution of Genetic Evolvability
“The hypothesis that evolvability – the capacity to evolve by natural selection – is itself the object of natural selection is highly intriguing but remains controversial due in large part […]
Review of the Recent Study, “Increased L1 Retrotransposition in the Neuronal Genome in Schizophrenia”
Now, for repeat readers, you probably know I have a professional interest in the topic of transposable elements. So it should come as no surprise that a recent article published […]
An Update on My Current Work: Bald Mice & Autism Genomics
I gotta be honest: my brain is pretty fried this weekend. After each sentence I type here I find myself staring off into space snatching some microsleep. Ya ever feel […]
Are Changes in the Epigenome Actually due to the Dynamic Nature of DNA?
I could be totally wrong on this one, which is cool. Happens often enough. And I won’t profess to be an expert in epigenetics, though I’m not completely ignorant of […]
Continuing the Debate on “Function” in Junk DNA: Rethinking the Onion Test
“From our very early days we learn to react to situations with the appropriate responses, linguistic or otherwise. The teaching procedures both shape the ‘appearance’, or ‘phenomenon’, and establish a […]
Olfactory Receptor Genes: An Ancient & Unusual Subset of the Vertebrate Genome
Compared to vision and audition, the sense of smell is an exceptionally ancient one. And you might be surprised but the ability to detect odorous particles (also known as chemosensation) […]
