Genetics & Environment

Question 1

variability

Answer 1

diff b/t members of same species

Question 2

heritability

Answer 2

proportion of variability explained by genetic variation

Question 3

genes

Answer 3

discrete units of heredity

Question 4

gene expression

Answer 4

process where gene is converted from DNA –> functional product in cell (usually protein, but also RNA)

Question 5

alleles

Answer 5

diff forms of gene, which controls the same trait

Question 6

intergenerational trauma (give example)

Answer 6

parents w/ unresolved trauma transmit it to their children. resulting in the effects of trauma being expressed w/o original traumatic experience (residential schools)

Question 7

gene x environment interactions (give example)

Answer 7

genetic variation alters sensitivity to environmental exposures, environmental features modulate impact of genetics
ex: impact of genetics + envir (campus drinking culture - found Korean freshman w/ “deterrent” genotype drank just as frequently, but less amounts

Question 8

protective factors (give example)

Answer 8

buffer against genetic risk (supportive parenting)

Question 9

distal vs. proximal risk factors (give example)

Answer 9

distal: has direct impact on health (childhood trauma, genetics)

proximal: indirect impact on health (emotion dysregulation, impulsivity)

Question 10

adoption studies

Answer 10

• compare rates of addiction b/t adopted individuals and their biological and adoptive families
• helps separate influence of genetics (nature) from envir (nurture) in dev of addiction

Question 11

genome-wide association studies (GWAs)

Answer 11

used to ID genetic variants associated w/ specific diseases/traits
- involves scanning entire genomes of many individuals to find genetic markers linked to observable traits
- compares genomes of individuals w/ and w/o trait/disease (cases vs controls)
- ID single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that occur more frequently in one group than the other

Question 12

multifinality

Answer 12

how one genetic risk can lead to multiple outward expressions (nonspecific, there isn’t a cocaine gene)
- mental disorders are often comorbid
- ex: genetic vulnerability could lead to gambling, insomnia, insecure attachment style, PTSD, depr, sub use, etc

Question 13

Equifinality

Answer 13

multiple diff risk factors manifest in one outward expression/outcome

Question 14

5 limitations of genetics research

Answer 14

1) association b/t candidate gene and addiction phenotype = not a causal relationship (correlation is not causation)
2) failure to replicate + assoc. findings for candidate genes
3) difficult to disentangle gene + environmental interactions (ex: dispositional diff b/t twins)
4) cumulative complexity (difficult to accurately capture polygenic risk, ex: where multiple genes confer risk)
5) rare variants may be difficult to detect in larger studies of ethnically diverse pops

Question 15

endophenotype

Answer 15

heritable disease-assoc. phenotypes, can be disorder-specific
- ex: biochemical endophenotypes of alcohol and acetaldehyde metabolism linked to the ADH1B and ALDH2 genes (can be a risk or protection from alcoholism)

Question 16

criticism for adoption studies to be used to make preventions in schools

Answer 16

interventions are often done in schools but this isn’t realistic in a real-world setting
- hard to be individualized to each person, don’t know which children have parents w/ genetic predispositions