Phobias can be genetically transmitted memories
A study with rats has shown that traumatic episodes can
chemically alter DNA, causing subsequent generations to inherit genes that
cause phobias Researchers at Emory University in Atlanta have found that a
situation that causes some form of trauma not only causes structural changes in
the brain, but also promotes genetic changes in DNA. They came to this
conclusion by causing mice to associate the scent of the cherry blossom with
electric shocks. After the animals reproduced, two generations of offspring
were shown to fear that same smell. Clown phobia is called coulrophobia (Photo:
mika est glauque / Flickr / Creative Commons) The discovery suggests that
certain information and experiences can also be transmitted to descendants in a
biological way, and not just through language or personal experience. If proven
also for humans, the mechanism of genetic transmission of memory will be of
great interest to areas such as neuropsychiatry - just as there is a
possibility of inheriting a genetic disease such as cancer, there would also be
a chance of receiving propensities for psychiatric pathologies such as phobias,
anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder. Therefore, if you have a phobia of
spiders, the reason may be a dramatic encounter between an ancestor and an
arachnid. In this case, arachnophobia manifests itself as a defense mechanism
stored in the familiar genes. "We started to explore a little-valued
influence on the behavior of adults - the ancestral experience prior to
conception," says Brian Dias, one of the authors of the article, published
in the scientific publication Nature Neuroscience. According to Dias, old experiences
of our parents can influence the structure and functioning of our nervous
system. Now, the researchers hope to deepen the work to better understand how
the information is lodged in the genome. The next step will be to investigate
whether the process also occurs in humans. The area of biology that studies
this type of phenomenon is epigenetics. Cool huh? Is cockroach phobia genetic
too?
Source:
https://revistagalileu.globo.com/Ciencia/noticia/2013/12/fobias-podem-ser-memorias-transmitidas-genética.html