imgWelcome to the 21st edition of Mendel’s Garden, here at The Inoculated Mind. Genetics-related blog posts were submitted from around the blogosphere during the month of November, and here you will find the best of them for your reading enjoyment this December, 2007. It seemed that although the topics were mixed, as they always are, there was a general theme to this month’s submissions. Old DNA never dies.

First, let’s take a romp through the issue of human cloning. Phil at Phil for Humanity discusses the pros and cons of human cloning and considers whether or not it should be banned. Read Reasons for and Against Human Cloning to find out what his conclusion is. I’ll tell you one thing he didn’t consider: Everyone knows that clones always turn out to be evil. (Or maybe I, too, have seen too much SciFi.)

They may not be clones, but broiler chickens sure don’t have a lot of genetic diversity. Thankfully, some researchers have been keeping chickens in a selection-neutral environment and have had new phenotypic variations pop up! What does this all mean for chicken breeding? Read Jeremy’s post Happy Birthday, Chicken at Agricultural Biodiversity Weblog. Hint: it has to do with disease.
Also, on the flip side of the genetic components of disease, Greg Laden at Greg Laden’s Blog reports on peer-reviewed research on an intestinal pathogen once thought to be primitive. It’s been having sex in our intestines! Read about it’s exploits at Giardia: Protozoan of never ending wonders.

Greg seems to be in the mood for more sexual exploits of small eukaryotes lately, for he also has a detailed post about the sexual organs of nematodes and the issue of neutral evolution. Read all about it at The Nematode Vulva and the Nature of Evolution.

On a roll, Greg Laden also dives into recent research on DNA evidence for migration patterns and what this means and does not necessarily mean for the Origin of Native America.

Not to be outdone, PZ Myers of Pharyngula thinks that the claims of Dubious Parentage about James Watson would be both ironic, and also a stretch of genetic logic. You know, we’re all of African descent if you think about it, and that’s enough irony to set against Watson’s recent statements of bigotry.
While people are busy trying to sabotage Watson’s genome, there is some genomic sabotage going on. Writing about more peer-reviewed research at Cotch dot net, Joe Dunckley contributes with Carefully sabotaging the genome. What happens to cross-overs during meiosis when you remove a necessary recombination factor? It’s no small wonder, he says, why the protective reflex is so strong - gonads have delicate things going on inside!

As you can see, the posts have been getting more and more about old, broken DNA. Now, Chris Patil at Ouroboros has two short pieces about aging. He’s gotten enthralled by cute little Tardigradas, or “water bears,” and a strange aspect of their longevity when compared to other stress-tolerant animals. I’ve just got to say, I’d love to see a plush toy of a Tardigrada! Read about them at The slow-walking masters of stress-resistance.
Chris also has Restricting Inflammaging, if you’d like to find out what that means and a connection we’ve learned between insulin and longevity.
I’ll tell you a secret, though. There’s a secret formula that I’ve uncovered that will return you to a youthful state - by rebuilding your DNA! And you know it works because it combines the subunits of DNA with lasers. LASERS!! Read about this incredible credulous food supplement ad I came across in an magazine I picked up last month in Monday Madness: Rebuild your DNA!

On a more serious and interesting note, I also wrote a post about a recent article correlating acceptance or resistance to various forms of biotechnology with none other than the religious predispositions of the people deciding on it. Read more about Biotechnology and Religious Beliefs. I’ve also got some more under the Genetics category on the left, if you dare stick around my blog for more.
We’ve learned today that DNA lives on, whether in the bodies of long-since-dead Native Americans, enzyme-deprived germ-line cells, or maybe someday in clones of ouselves in petri dishes or perhaps haunting our footsteps as well. We’ve also learned a few clues to longevity, and also learned about a few clueless longevity-scammers that some magazines do not have the fortitude to refuse to print their maddening ads. Sometimes the frontiers of knowledge may be hindered by philosophical predispositions as well, but clearly the general public needs to know more about what is an increasingly important part of our lives.

Genetics can be very confusing, and thanks to the contributors who this month, may have brought a few more people into the light of the science of heredity and variation. And now to complete the opener.
Old DNA never dies…

…It just gets fragmented.

Thanks for reading. The next Mendel’s Garden will be hosted in January 2008 at the Biomarker-driven mental health 2.0. Send your genetics-related posts via the Mendel’s Garden blog submission page, sign up to host at the Mendel’s Garden website, and get ready for more great genetics blogging!