"Lamarck and the Missing Lnc" - from The Scientist

Nice overview by Kevin B. Morris in the cover story of The Scientist, Lamarck and the Missing Lnc, of the work in epigenetics which is challenging the basic tenet of evolution that random mutation is the only source of change in genetics.

As I understand it, serious challenges to an individual's survival may cause heritable changes in the ability of the DNA to express particular regions of the genetic code.  "Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are transcripts generally expressed from regions of 'junk' DNA that are not thought to code for proteins" but now it seems they may be controlling the expression of the genes, controlling when and how much of a particular protein is produced by the cell.  Suppression of the expression caused by an environmental challenge may be heritable.
(See images 1: The Epigenetic LNC, 2: A Mechanism for a Targeted Change, and 3: Directing Evolution)

Back in the dawn of genetics, Jean-Baptiste Pierre Antoine de Monet, Chevalier de la Marck, often known simply as Lamarck, theorized that traits formed in an individual's life would then be passed on to it's offspring; for example, a giraffe could develop a long neck because it stretched it reaching for forage up high, and their offspring would inherit longer necks as a result. Lamarck's theory has been a prime example of a thoroughly de-bunked scientific theory for decades.

These developments don't exactly support Lamarck's theory, but there is more than a whiff of Lamarckism about them.  And, there do seem to be holes in the strict Darwinism now.  Exciting times!

"Scientists Decry Isotope, DNA Testing of ‘Nationality"

In the special issue of Science out today, a news item describes a dismaying misuse of science and technology. As one of its tests, the Borders Agency in Britain is piloting use of DNA analysis and isotope testing of soft tissues to verify (or not) whether a person applying for asylum in the U.K. comes from the country they claim to have come from.

"My first reaction is this is wildly premature, even ignoring the moral and ethical aspects," says Alec Jeffreys of the University of Leicester, who pioneered human DNA fingerprinting. ...

After reviewing the Border Agency's plans, Jeffreys [wrote] in an e-mail to Science: "The Borders Agency is clearly making huge and unwarranted assumptions about population structure in Africa; the extensive research needed to determine population structure and the ability or otherwise of DNA to pinpoint ethnic origin in this region simply has not been done. Even if it did work (which I doubt), assigning a person to a population does not establish nationality - people move! The whole proposal is naive and scientifically flawed."

Because the hue and cry over this is so widespread in the scientific community, I wondered if this might be a case of those in power trying to use science to intimidate rather than actually expecting to get at the truth. Questionable asylum-seekers might be threatened with the use of "scientific tests" in hopes that they will admit to falsifying their country of origin. This might be deemed reasonable if the tests would actually produce relevant information, but, instead, what is questionable is the attempt to assign country of origin by these means.

Epigenetics on Nova scienceNOW

I've been trying to catch Nova scienceNOW (yes, that's how it's written) on PBS with that engaging host, astronomer and American Museum of Natural History researcher, Neil deGrasse Tyson. It's one more way to keep up with new developments in a range of sciences, and to see what merits the attention of the mainstream. Last week, there was a piece on epigenetics, (a repeat show, I think) which I had never heard of (so shoot me), or at least it had never registered with me. Fascinating stuff illustrated with why identical twins can develop such disparate lives - one getting a life-threatening disease when the other doesn't - we're finally unravelling how gene expression works.

There are some resources about epigenetics on the site linked above, including a video of the segment from the show.