Genetics: ADHD And Epigenetics

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Introduction: Cracking the code at life All organisms on the planet have chromosomes that carry genetic material that makes it up protein by protein and that is passed on from generation to generation. Whatever the organism, fruit fly or humans, we all have DNA (Blum, et al, 2010). To understand criminality, we must first invest time into figuring out why humans behave and respond in a certain situation. We must look deep into the brain which is a result of our anatomy, neurochemistry, physiology, and genome (Blum, et al, 2010). The genome is the most important because it dictates the other three along with environmental factors. The field of behavioral genetics searches for the answer to the complex entanglement of nature verses nurture. ADHD and Epigenetics Epigenetics is the study of how inherited traits are expressed and influenced by the environment, and it is extremely complex. Joseph Nadeau has traced over one hundred biochemical, physiological, and behavioral traits affected by epigenetics. He has seen them be passed down through several generations (Blum, et al, 2010). ADHD, which has been linked to anti-social behavior, is thought to have epigenetic roots. In one adoption-based study done by a group of colleagues, they found that if the mother was an alcoholic or a criminal, the child was at great risk for ADHD. If the father was criminal, the child was also at an increased risk, but having an alcoholic father did not seem to have any effects of the offspring in terms of developing ADHD (Beaver, Nedelec, et al, 2011). Criminal behavior would be the genetic control, and alcoholism would be the environmental factor. Even though they both play a role, genes are still the platform the environment works on to create what ... ... middle of paper ... ...is actions (Wolfson, 2014). If they are punished, it is not fair. If they are not punished, well, that is not fair either. It may not be the person’s fault they committed a crime, but if it is in their genes, then it doesn’t matter; that is still who they are. We only get to choose who we want to be to a certain extent because our genes control the rest. Crime and genetics is a fairly new field of study, but it is increasing rapidly, and although scientists have sequenced the entire human genome, they still do not what majority of it codes for (Wolfson, 2014). In the future, there could be more discoveries of genes such as the MAOA gene that can help us understand human behavior, and that ultimately could lead to figuring out how DNA builds and wires our brain. Gaining knowledge of how the brain works would be one of the biggest breakthroughs in scientific history.

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