Study looks at gays and genetics

Link: http://www.thestate.com/nation/story/201775.html

This article was about Julio and Mauricio Cabrera who are gay brothers who are convinced their sexual orientation rooted as their Mexican ancestry. They are among 1,000 pairs of gay brothers taking part of the largest study to date seeking genes that may influence whether people are gay. They hope that findings will help silence critics who say homosexuality is an immortal choice. One widely cited study in the 1990s found that if one member of a pair of identical twins was gay, the other had a 52 percent chance of being gay. In contrast, the result for pairs of non-twin brothers, was 9 percent. The Cabrera brothers grew up in Mexico in a culture where “being gay was an embarrassment,” especially for their father. They had cousins who were gay, but Mauricio said he still felt he had to hide his sexual orientation and he struggled with his “double life.” Julio said having an older brother who was gay made it easier for him to accept his sexuality. Many gays fear that if gay genes are identified, it could result in discrimination, prenatal testing and even abortions to eliminate homosexuals, however if they confirm that sexual orientation is an immutable characteristic, they are much more likely to get the courts to rule against discrimination. If the study finds markers that appear in gay brothers but not their straight brothers or parents, that would suggest a link to sexual orientation. The study is designed to find genetic markers, not to explain any genetic role in behavior.


I found this article interesting because sexual identity is an issue we come across quite frequently. Is one of those topics that involve alot of controversy. I found this article interesting because the 2 brothers come from a Mexican Background and in that culture being gay is not the way you want to be portrayed. I am not saying that that there is nothing wrong with choosing your sexuality but in the Mexican culture that is how I was raised and taught. I thought it was interesting how if your identical twin brother is gay the other would have a 52% chance which was quite fascinating, I never knew that. I thought that this study and approach should help them figure out if gay genes are able to be identified.