2012 National DNA Day Online Chatroom Transcript

This is just one question from an archive of the National DNA Day Moderated Chat held in April 2012. The NHGRI Director and many genomics experts from across NHGRI took questions from students, teachers and the general public on topics ranging from basic genomic research, to the genetic basis of disease, to ethical questions about genetic privacy.

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Is it possible for a human to be born cold-blooded?      Patricia Devers: I am a reproductive genetic counselor with over twelve years of experience in this field. My focus is clinical, particularly working with families who are pregnant or contemplating pregnancy who have an increased risk or a known birth defect or genetic condition in their pregnancy. There are many genes involved in the process of human thermoregulation. A change in one of the genes would likely not be enough to completely alter the way we regulate our body temperature. So it is unlikely that a person would be born cold-blooded. If, due to environmental pressures, it was beneficial for humans to become cold-blooded, we may evolve over many, many generations to become cold-blooded animals. Peru High School in IN (9th grade student)

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