This article “Mouse Study Discovers DNA That Controls
Behavior” describes a research team that is led to believe that the behavior of
animals, and humans, is dictated by the complex genetic coding. Studying the
burrows of deer mice scientists have concluded that four major sections of DNA
“tell a mouse how long a burrow to dig and whether to add an escape tunnel.” Hoekstra
believes that this research will lead to a better understanding of the internal
system of the deer mice, and could account for the behavioral variation in
humans. This team is applying over a decade of work on ecology and evolutionary
biology to study unusual and more complicated behavior than mating, which we
understand to be governed by genetics in worms and such. Dr. Hoekstra’s study
she observed two species of deer mice, one being the oldfield deer mice, and
another, Peromyscus maniculatus. They determined that the tunnel length would
be a physical or measurable trait, like a tail. The oldfield deer mice created
long tunnels without escape tunnels, unlike the Peromyscus maniculatus, which
created tunnels with escape tunnels. They bred the two species and observed the
results to “show a blend of characteristics, varying in length and with and
without escape tunnels.” They compared variations in tunnels to variations in
DNA and found that three sections of DNA determined the tunnel length, and a
separate gene determined if there would be an escape tunnel or not. While the
research group is not saying that the four DNA are responsible for the entire
length of the tunnel, the tunnel length is 30% inherited. And they derived if a
short burrow mouse had long burrow DNA it would be 40% more likely to dig an
escape tunnel. Still, Dr. Bargmann says while this is great progress in
behavioral genetics, it is not the actual genes which is the eventual goal.
This
is article is relative to the topic of genetics we are studying currently and
therefore thought it was a great article to review. While I never believed that
behavior was determined by specific DNA or genes this article insist that from
studying the deer mice and their building of tunnels, that this is in fact true.
It’s a cool concept to think that how we act is inherited entirely from our
genes, and that in the end our DNA is all chance of how the genes shuffle and
pair. By this study scientists believe we are closer to finding a way to
correlate our behaviors to our DNA, and possibly even genes.
Overall
I enjoyed this article and its description of the study. One thing I believed could’ve
been improved is including the exact results or the statistics after the
breeding between the two species of deer mice. Another is the description of the actual study and what DNA
they found to determine the building of tunnels.
Marika Chrisanthopoulos
ReplyDeleteAP Biology Commentary
January 16, 2013
Comment #10
Brooke’s analysis of the article “Mouse Study Discovers DNA That Controls Behavior” describes the experiments performed by Dr. Hoekstra on different types of mice that lead to new information about DNA to be discovered. Dr. Hoekstra observed two different types of mice; oldfield deer mice as well as Peromyscus maniculatus mice. In her study, she determined how the differences in their DNA caused them to have different reactions when placed in certain tunnels, testing their behavioral genetics. In the article, it describes in depth the details about the tests, which talk about how important certain measurable traits were, such as the tunnel length, and whether it had an escape area or not. In her review of this article, Brooke did very well in describing the experiments, as well as the variations in the tests and some of the results at the end. Another thing that she did well was that she related the article to what we are studying in class; it is very relevant, as Brooke pointed out, to the topics we are currently learning about, such as genetics, DNA, and hereditary traits. This article accurately shows how the whole “nature vs nurture” theory plays out, and how it is true that our DNA and genetics do play a leading role in our behavior as well as our physical traits. Another thing that Brooke did well is that she critiqued the article well, including how it could have been improved by adding in more of the results that were obtained.
One thing that Brooke could have improved on was that she could have looked up the differences between the two types of mice; what makes them each special? How could their different inherited characteristics have impacted the results? Some more information about the two breeds would have been helpful. Another thing that she could have done better was that she could have analyzed the data a bit more and related it to our own lives; even though she explained the experiment to us very well, she did not really emphasize what impact the data has on us as humans and for the future of behavioral genetics. One thing that I learned from this review is that our DNA really does affect our behavior; not only do our actions stem from our experiences, but also from what we inherited from our parents as newborns. This topic really interests me and I would like to do more research in the future involving the importance and impact of DNA on behavior in humans as well as animals.
I read Brooke’s review of the article “Study Discovers DNA That Tells Mice How to Construct Their Homes.” One aspect of Brooke’s review that I thought was well done was her summary of the article. She did a great job mentioning the key points and stating specific data. For example, she mentioned that the researchers discovered that the tunnel length is inherited. Brooke also did a great job selecting this article. Like Brooke I also think this was a great topic to pick because we are learning about genetics and genetic traits in class. So this article definitely helps us understand genetics in modern day science. A third and final part of Brooke’s review that was nicely done was he explanation of the experiments done by Dr. Hoekstra and her team. He explained what the goal of the study was and how the team attempted to accomplish that goal.
ReplyDeleteWhile Brooke did a great job on this review there were some areas she could have improved. Brooke could have mentioned how this article affected us outside our biology class. For example, she could have mentioned how this would affect the human race. She also could have speculated as to if she thinks that human genes also affect traits. In addition Brooke could have mentioned people’s original ideas about the experiment. For example, Robert Anholt stated that it was courageous to undertake this particular work because of the great difficulty of dealing with complicated behavior, and that the approach was innovative and pushed forward what was possible in behavioral genetics.
I found this article very interesting. I did not think that genes could determine how long a mouse tunnel would be or if there would be an escape tunnel. I found this interesting and I wonder how this might be similar in humans.
Brooke did an excellent job of reviewing the article, “Mouse Study Discovers DNA That Controls Behavior.” One aspect of the review that was particularly well presented was the main issue it was describing. The main idea describes a research team that is led to believe that the behavior of animals, and humans, is dictated by the complex genetic coding. The reason behind this belief, is due to a study concluding four major sections of DNA tell a mouse how long a burrow to dig and whether to add an escape tunnel. Another idea that is well presented is how these studies came to be. Dr. Hoekstra’s team is applying over a decade of work on ecology and evolutionary biology to study unusual and more complicated behavior than mating, which we understand to be governed by genetics in worms and such.
ReplyDeleteI believe this comment could have been made better was a better description of where these experiments were being conducted. Where were the mammals from whose DNA was tested? Does an animal’s environment affect its habits? Another way to improve this would be to include the results or the statistics after the breeding between the two species of deer mice, and the description of the actual study and what DNA they found to determine the building of tunnels.
This article was very surprising to me. I never would have thought that how we act as humans is entirely inherited through our genes. This is an interesting concept for me to think about as I move forward in my life and discover who I truly am, and see if all of my behaviors correlate to those of my ancestors.
Middy Foley
ReplyDeleteComment #10
I read the review by Brooke for the article, “Mouse Study Discovers DNA That Controls Behavior.” Firstly, I thought the reviewer presented the results of the study very well. She explained how deer mice have four major sections that tell a mouse how long to dig or whether to add an escape burrow to their burrows, as well as control other behavioral features. Secondly, she explained how they came across these results. Scientists used two different deer mice, the oldfield deer mice who created long tunnels without escape tunnels and the Peromyscus maniculatus, who created tunnels with escape routes. By breeding both mice they were able to compare the variations in tunnels to variations in DNA and found that three sections of DNA determined the tunnel length, and a separate gene determined if there would be an escape tunnel or not. Thirdly, the reviewer addressed the flaws in the research, noting that the actual genes for these behavioral traits have not been located.
I think the reviewer could have improved this review by developing the importance of this research on a broader scale. She notes that this research could lead to an account for the behavioral variation in humans, but does not elaborate on this. This would have made the results of the research more relatable and important. Secondly, the reviewer could have added some opinions on the research, including those of Cori Bargmann, who studies the genetics of behavior in roundworms at Rockefeller University, who commented the results were “really exciting.” This would have added some additional enthusiasm for the research.
One thing I learnt from this review was that genes could actually effect behavioral traits. That was surprising and interesting.
Nicolette Petnuch
ReplyDeleteThe review of “Study discovers DNA that tells mice how to construct their homes” was very well done. The article was about a group of scientists who performed an almost decade long study on deer mice to test the behavior of animals lies in their complex genetic coding.
A good point made in this article was explaining how the experiment was done. The scientists picked tunnel length as a trait to test in the deer mice because the oldfield deer mice make tunnels that are long and have escape tunnels while the peromyscus maniculatus creates shorter tunnels without escape routes. Another good point in the article was the explanation of the outcome of the experiment. The scientists bred the two mouse species and observed the results to see a mix of different characteristic in the tunnels that were created. They compared variations in tunnels to variations in DNA and found that three sections of DNA determined the tunnel length, and a different gene coded for if there would be an escape tunnel or not. Finally, a good point in this article was the relation to what we are studying in Biology. The idea that genes can cause behavioral traits is something very interesting.
One thing that could have been better discussed in the article was if there was any current study going on. If genes really code for behavior, then why is it that an animal put in the zoo and then released into the wild after many years forgets how to hunt? Or when an animal is born in the zoo and put into the wild, why does it not automatically know how to survive? Another thing that could have been improved was the explanation of how the experiment was conducted. Where was this taking place, how were the surrounds placed so that the mice knew to make tunnels?
This article was very interesting and could lead to future studies of how humans behaviors are a result of their genetic makeup.
I think that the review of the article “Study Finds DNA That Tells Mice How to Construct Their Homes” did a good job explaining how scientists are showing that complex behaviors, such as tunnel making, are influenced by complex genetic coding in field mice. Brooke used a lot of facts and quotes from the original article, to help explain the new report, which was very helpful. Also, I agree a lot with Brooke’s review of the article. I believe that it would have been even more interesting had the author supplied more information on the actual study, such as which piece of DNA they found had effected tunnel building abilities. I realize that the scientists have so far found, “…regions of DNA, not actual genes”, but it still may have been interesting to be given a bit more information. Finally, I like how Brooke chose this article, for it truly is relevant to the topic that we are currently studying.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Brooke’s review was very good, there were a few things she could have done to make it even better. For example, she said, “It’s a cool concept to think that how we act is inherited entirely from our genes…” This, however, is not an accurate reflection on the article’s view, or that of many people. In the article itself, it is written, “All complicated behaviors are affected by many things… so these regions of DNA do not determine tunnel architecture and length by themselves.” This is an important matter to understand, for it is the main basis for the debate of nature versus nurture. Lastly, although Brooke did a nice job analyzing the connection between this article and our biology class, she could have delved deeper into the importance such a find can have on the human race.
This article and its review were overall very interesting. It truly shows the importance of our genes and DNA. Although Dr. Hoekstra mentioned the importance of our nurture, nature clearly plays an extremely important role in our development. A perfect example of this, I found in the article, is the fact that after generations of captivity field mice still will return to burrowing and constructing elaborate tunnels with escape hatches if in the right environment.
Current Event #10
ReplyDeleteI felt that Brooke’s review of the article, “Mouse Study Discovers DNA That Controls Behavior,” was very interesting. Many aspects of her review were presented particularly well. For example, I really liked how she related the article to what we did in class. I feel that the best articles to read are those that are relevant to what we do in class as it may give you another perspective on the information that we learn. Also, I thought she did a very good of describing, in great detail, the experiments performed by Dr. Hoekstra in his investigation of certain genes and their importance to tunnel lengths in rats. Finally, I liked how she analyzed the results of the experiment as this allowed you to really understand what the scientists found.
Despite the fact that the article was very interesting and coherent, there were a few things that I would have changed. For example, I would have added a little connection between the findings of the experiment to the human race in a broad spectrum. This would have made the impact of the results of the experiment more profound. Also, I would have gone into a little more detail about the different species of deer mice, as I was a little confused on their differences, like environment, which would have played a very important role in the evolution of the characteristics of their tunnels.
All in all I found this article to be very interesting. One thing that I learned from this article that I found to be very intriguing was that specific genes could dictate more than just the physical composition of an organism. For example, as described in the article, specific genes can dictate the way in which the organism builds their home.