Curated Paper 2

Haley Yates

Biology 4500

Curated Paper 2

The brain is very intriguing and difficult to understand. It’s fascinating to try to learn about the brain’s inner workings. I’ve taken psychology and anatomy classes where we talk about brain structures and functions. I think it’s incredible how the body can change an electrical impulse into a mechanical or hormonal response. There are different kinds of brain tissues that do different things as well as different neurons that carry signals to specific locations in the body. All these parts are connected, intertwined, and work together to control every system and every function in the body.

There are various disorders associated with the brain. One disorder that I am familiar with is dementia. My grandma has been diagnosed with early onset dementia and her memory has been failing her for years. It has affected her ability to take care of herself, she no longer remembers who I am, and is living in an assisted living residence. The deterioration of microtubules associated with Alzheimer’s is an example of the body affecting the mind. This brings us back to the idea of Ayurveda and that there are connections between the body, mind, and spirit. When these connections are out of balance, the outcome is disease. I think the disconnect between mind and body can be pretty severe and difficult to repair. When it comes to imbalances in the brain, the resulting disorders can alter personality, change moods, and impair cognitive abilities. It changes the person, the spirit if that’s how you define it, as well as the quality of living like other diseases.

Traumatic brain injuries, another type of a brain disorder, are different in everybody. No two injuries present the same symptoms or heal the same. There can even be similarities in symptoms among different disorders. Dementia patients and TBI injuries both display irritability, changes in mood, and impaired intellectual abilities. Concussions are the most common traumatic brain injury and a lot of sports are trying to prevent them. I was reminded of when I played sports in high school and we had concussion protocols we had to follow. There were different balance tests we did and questions we had to answer before an injury to have something to compare if an injury occurred. Organizations like the NFL have implemented more strict guidelines on tackles and new protocol for when players are hit in the head. Brain injuries alter a person’s character and can impact family, jobs, and social interactions and I think that is why they are so serious.

The paper we read talked about the definitions of mind and brain and how they are often thought of as separate but should be considered together. The brain is defined as genes and biology, and the mind was defined by environment and psychosociology. I think it is important to distinguish the differences between the terms and what they entail, but understand that they must be used together. Environment can influence genes, biology can influence psychology. The link between the mind and brain is what makes a person. Just another example on the connections between body and mind and the Ayurveda theme.

The topic of gene therapy is one of much controversy. The ethical debate shows both benefits and possible complications with the process. The concern stems from germ-line cell therapy versus somatic cell therapy. The option to now pass on these gene modifications causes skepticism. I can see the benefit of ridding an individual of a genetic disorder and, with germ-line gene modification, future generations of that disorder as well. A lot of pressure falls on parents. Are they modifying the embryo because they don’t want a disabled child, or because they want what is best for that child? With little known about long-term effects of changing genes or unintended consequences, I hesitate to want to participate in gene therapy myself.

I’m currently in a biomedical ethics class and this idea of eugenics came up when we discussed the holocaust. Nazi Germany wanted to cleanse their race by getting rid of “unfit” individuals. They targeted certain people and sterilized populations to prevent undesirable traits from being passed on. I can see gene therapy being abused and progressing into this dangerous territory because there is such a fine line between treatment and enhancement. When used under proper regulations, germ-line gene modification can be amazing and do wonderful things to prevent genetic disorders. However, the question begs to be asked, is it really necessary? Humans have lived for 1.8 million years with all types of diseases. And yeah, certain genetic disorders are difficult to live with, but does bypassing evolution and normal practices have its own detrimental effects that could be worse? Maybe these questions don’t have answers, but they are worth considering.

I found the concept of genetic-ism intriguing. The idea that genetics determine all human characteristics seems ridiculous at first. Psychology classes have taught me that there is nature vs. nurture complex that governs individuals and that environment plays a role in our existence. But, have environments effected the genes? An example would be, populations that live near the equator that have darker skin versus populations in higher latitudes with lighter skin. The environment has influenced populations to adapt, causing genes to produce more melanin when exposed to more direct sunlight. Removing individuals from those environments doesn’t cause less melanin to be produced because it’s now in their genes. If, then, genetics does determine all human characteristics, does changing the genes change the person? This is another argument made by people opposed to germ-line gene modification. The person who comes out of a gene therapy modification isn’t the same as the person before, in more ways than just being disease free. It’s tough to think about and a difficult question to answer. And maybe genes don’t govern everything, but they determine enough that altering the genes could very well change the person.

I think there are so many questions surrounding gene therapy because there is little research and a lot that is left unknown about the subject. Particularly the long-term effects and passing altered genes on to future generations. Changes in diversity and variation in a population could also be problematic. Ayurveda principles tell us that a diseased individual is out of balance. Gene therapy by altering somatic cells could help in individual become balanced. But when we look at it from a population’s viewpoint, diversity is what we want. Monotony in populations and decreased variation could be considered unbalanced and therefore diseased. I don’t think we should alter germ-line genes and instead let natural practices run their course.