Cognitive Labs

James Watson co-discoverer of the nature of DNA with Francis Crick

Since it was learned that the APOEe4 variant of the APOE gene results in an increased risk of Alzheimer's - particularly so in the homogeneous 4/4 type, with risk between 10-20X the norm, there has been a debate focused on whether or not 'finding out' something so personal was worth it. In fact, one of the codebusters of the human genome, Dr. James Watson, has stated that he was not interested in finding out about APOE risk - however many other scientists, business leaders, and visionaries have publicly stated their desire to know.

Casting fresh light on the situation, a new study based at Boston University evaluating the psychological impact of "knowing" about propensity shows that it might be better to have this knowledge than to remain ignorant - and that people are equipped to handle the truth.

After all, if people are not continually striving, like Prometheus, to advance knowledge - than progress stalls and humanity's increasing cognitive ability - all of which has occurred during the last 1 millisecond of the cosmic clock when abstract thinking arose and was appended to tool-development (consider Lascaux and on petroglyphs) - may stop.

Labels: apoee4, boston, codebusters, watson

The McClatchy news organization syndicated this article about how genetic determinants are getting increasingly involved in healthcare. The APOE gene is mentioned.



But this is only one gene among thousands that are significant for various disorders as well as simple variation - not disorders, but differentiation between lifeforms.

Crick, Watson, DNA

Labels: apoe, crick, dna, mcclatchy, watson

Dr. James Watson, usually credited with unraveling of DNA along with Francis Crick, became one of the first people to have his own personal genome mapped - maybe the first.

This entails a thorough assessment which can lead to a better understanding of risk factors for certain diseases and conditions which append their outcomes to genetic antecedents.

Think of it, perhaps, as a structural engineer conducting a risk assessment or failure analysis on a highway overpass or skyscraper - a personal genome map accomplishes this task for the superstucture of your physical body.

With this information in hand, 'bugs' in the program can be identified and corrected, sometimes due to junk code in our DNA left over from an evolutionary branch that was not followed.

With the Brain - APOEe4 positive is one of the genetic conditions to watch for since it greatly impacts Alzheimer's Disease and early onset cases across the human family.
So, exercising your brain and building cognitive reserve is good for everyone - APOEe4 assessment is key for those who are APOEe4 positive. Normally people are diagnosed without any genetic assessment when symptoms are already apparent. APOEe4 begins to impact individuals at a young age before there are any symptoms - knowing about it helps you take charge of your life.

Labels: apoee4, crick, dna, genome mapping, watson