We talk about molecular population and evolutionary GENETICS and GENOMICS. You know, the caliper measurement of a gene's evolvability in moles.That's right: if you study human genetics, you suck. In relation to Drosophila geneticists, of course. You see, human geneticists are boring. Drosophila geneticists come up with clever names for genes. When the homologues are identified in humans, the names are deemed offensive and inappropriate. Apparently, patients don't like being told they have a mutation in the lunatic fringe gene. Or sonic hedgehog. Or mothers against decapentaplegia. This is according to an article in Nature.
Maybe I don't know jack about bedside manner, but I can appreciate the amount of thought that goes into naming Drosophila genes. For example, check out the story behind a chimeric gene identified by Manyuan Long and colleagues:
In an ancient Chinese legend, the first Chinese emperor Yande (3,000 BC) brother to the Yellow-Emperor, had a pretty princess named Jingwei. Like other legendary southern Chinese goddesses, Jingwei liked to swim. Unfortunately, she drowned in the East China Sea. She was reincarnated into a beautiful bird, who, to save others from possible tragedy, carried soil and stones in an attempt to fill in the ocean. The new gene was named jingwei because it was first thought to be a pseudogene and was then 'reincarnated' as a new functional gene with a new structure. To be consistent, other related genes were named following this legend.
The new chimeric gene is named jingwei, and the old gene from which jingwei arose is named yellow-emperor. It's this kind of commitment to gene naming that should envied by the human geneticists, not discouraged.
Comments
fruitless was originally fruity
Posted by: coturnix | November 7, 2006 2:09 PM
Yeah, there are some scientists who are lacking a functional copy of the good humor gene (yes, I made that one up and they will probably be unhappy about that, too).
But, some computational biologists know how to laugh. We have a friend who named a transposon after an A.A. Milne character
Posted by: Sandra Porter | November 7, 2006 2:50 PM
Aww, RPM don't be shy! Tell us what you really think! I would crack up if someone told me I had a mutation in a lunatic fringe gene...
Posted by: afarensis | November 7, 2006 3:07 PM
I am glad to know that I am "not necessarily [an] anarchi[st]".
Posted by: PhysioProf | November 10, 2006 1:58 PM