Lifespan Development. Tara L. Kuther

recessive sickle cell alleles, illustrating incomplete dominance.

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      Polygenic Inheritance

      Whereas dominant–recessive and codominant–recessive patterns account for some genotypes, most traits are a function of the interaction of many genes, known as polygenic inheritance. Hereditary influences act in complex ways, and researchers cannot trace most characteristics to only one or two genes. Instead, polygenic traits are the result of interactions among many genes. Examples of polygenic traits include height, intelligence, personality, and susceptibility to certain forms of cancer (Bouchard, 2014; Kremen, Panizzon, & Cannon, 2016; Penke & Jokela, 2016). As the number of genes that contribute to a trait increases, so does the range of possible traits. Genetic propensities interact with environmental influences to produce a wide range of individual differences in human traits.

      Genomic Imprinting

      The principles of dominant–recessive and incomplete dominance inheritance can account for over 1,000 human traits (McKusick, 2007). However, a few traits are determined by a process known as genomic imprinting. Genomic imprinting refers to the instance in which the expression of a gene is determined by whether it is inherited from the mother or the father (Kelly & Spencer, 2017; National Library of Medicine, 2017). For example, consider two conditions that illustrate genomic imprinting: Prader-Willi syndrome and Angelman syndrome. Both syndromes are caused by an abnormality in the 15th chromosome (Kalsner & Chamberlain, 2015). As shown in Figure 2.5, if the abnormality is acquired by the father (illustrated in black), the individual—whether a daughter or son—will develop Prader-Willi syndrome, a set of specific physical and behavioral characteristics including obesity, insatiable hunger, short stature, motor slowness, and mild to moderate intellectual impairment (Butler, Manzardo, Heinemann, Loker, & Loker, 2016). If the abnormal chromosome 15 arises from the mother (shown in red), the individual—again, whether it is a daughter or a son—will develop Angelman syndrome, characterized by hyperactivity, thin body frame, seizures, disturbances in gait, and severe learning disabilities, including severe problems with speech (Buiting, Williams, & Horsthemke, 2016). Prader-Willi and Angelman syndromes are rare, occurring on average in 1 in 12,000 to 20,000 persons (Kalsner & Chamberlain, 2015; Spruyt, Braam, & Curfs, 2018). Patterns of genetic inheritance can be complex, yet they follow predictable principles. For a summary of patterns of genetic inheritance, refer to Table 2.2.

      Description

      Figure 2.5 Genomic Imprinting

      Source: C. Cristofre Martin, 1998.

      Thinking in Context 2.1

      1 Why do twins occur? Consider the evolutionary developmental perspective discussed in Chapter 1. From an evolutionary developmental perspective, does twinning serve an adaptive purpose for our species? Why or why not?

      2 Consider your own physical characteristics, such as hair and eye color. Are they indicative of recessive traits or dominant ones?

      3 Do you think that you might be a carrier of recessive traits? Why or why not?

Table 2.2

      Chromosomal and Genetic Problems

      Many disorders are the result of genes passed through inheritance from one or both parents. Others are the result of variations in chromosomes. Fortunately, the vast majority of people —and animals, for that matter—inherit healthy genes. Many hereditary and chromosomal abnormalities can be diagnosed prenatally. Others are evident at birth or can be detected soon after an infant begins to develop. Still others reveal themselves only over a period of many years.

      Genetic Disorders

      Disorders and abnormalities that are inherited through the parents’ genes include such well-known conditions as cystic fibrosis and sickle cell anemia, as well as others that are rare and, in some cases, never even noticed throughout the individual’s life.

      A blood sample to detect PKU is taken from this newborn. Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a genetic disorder in which the body lacks the enzyme that breaks down phenylalanine. Without treatment, the phenylalanine builds up to toxic levels and can damage the central nervous system.

      Marmaduke St. John / Alamy Stock Photo

      Dominant–Recessive Disorders

      Recall that in dominant–recessive inheritance, dominant genes are always expressed regardless of the gene they are paired with and recessive genes are expressed only if paired with another recessive gene. Table 2.3 illustrates diseases that are inherited through dominant–recessive patterns. Few severe disorders are inherited through dominant inheritance because individuals who inherit the allele often do not survive long enough to reproduce and pass it to the next generation. One exception is Huntington disease, a fatal disease in which the central nervous system deteriorates (National Library of Medicine, 2017). Individuals with the Huntington allele develop normally in childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. Symptoms of Huntington’s disease do not appear until age 35 or later. By then, many individuals have already had children, and one half of them, on average, will inherit the dominant Huntington gene.

      Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a common recessive disorder that prevents the body from producing an enzyme that breaks down phenylalanine, an amino acid, from proteins (Kahn et al., 2016; Romani et al., 2017). Without treatment, the phenylalanine builds up quickly to toxic levels that damage the central nervous system, contributing to intellectual developmental disability, once known as mental retardation, by 1 year of age. The United States and Canada require all newborns to be screened for PKU (Blau, Shen, & Carducci, 2014).

      PKU illustrates how genes interact with the environment to produce developmental outcomes. Intellectual disability results from the interaction of the genetic predisposition and exposure to phenylalanine from the environment (Blau, 2016). Children with PKU can process only very small amounts of phenylalanine. If the disease is discovered, the infant is placed on a diet low in phenylalanine. Yet it is very difficult to remove nearly all phenylalanine from the diet. Individuals who maintain a strict diet usually attain average levels of intelligence, although tend to score lower than those without PKU (Jahja et al., 2017). Some cognitive and psychological problems may appear in childhood and persist into adulthood, particularly difficulty in attention and planning skills, emotional regulation, depression, and anxiety (Hawks, Strube, Johnson, Grange, & White, 2018; Jahja et al., 2017). The emotional and social challenges associated with PKU, such as the pressure of a strict diet and surveillance from parents, may worsen these symptoms, and dietary compliance tends to decline in adolescence (Medford, Hare, & Wittkowski, 2017).

      Table 2.3

      Sources: Kahn et al. (2016); McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine (2017).

      X-Linked Disorders

      A special instance of the dominant–recessive pattern occurs with genes that are located on the X chromosome (Shah, DeRemigis, Hageman, Sriram, & Waggoner, 2017). Recall that males (XY) have both an X and a Y chromosome. Some recessive genetic disorders, like the gene for red-green colorblindness, are