The Australian Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute studies, among other things, human epigenetics and the mechanisms for switching genes on and off. Human Epigenetic lead researcher Assam El-Osta has reported that a single sugar dose can switch off the genes that prevent diabetes and heart disease for as long as two weeks. The research is focusing on histone switching of DNA which is possibly transmitted genetically to embryos. El-Osta suspects that a consistently poor diet might generate permanent genetic damage.
This seems to me to be an important step forward. And nowhere is evolution mentioned, much less given credit for the findings. There is no doubt that empirical confirmation trials are underway, and that future health benefits will explode from such trials if the mechanism is confirmed.
If you have been hit with the idea that biology is absolutely dependent upon evolution (as I have been), well, it is not required for epigenetic research, nor for stem cell research. These are possibly the two most promising areas in biology for impacting the average person. And no evolution is required.
DNA itself was discovered by swapping genetic materials between single celled bacteria, not by use of evolutionary theory. And the helical structure of DNA was found using X-ray crystallography, also not by use of evolutionary theory. So much of the progress in biology has no need for evolutionary theory that one might wonder why evolution is so revered. Especially in light of experimental validations of those areas that are independent of evolution, the reverence seems rather mystical in its adherence to suppostions solely supported inferentially.
3 comments:
Hi Stan,
Great point. It's exactly like that ridiculous theory of gravity.
That's revered by scientists as well, with very little in the way of theoretical evidence to support it.
Take an example: there's a new building going up near where I work.
I saw the plans, and gravity wasn't mentioned once. Not once! And yet this building is apparently going to sit on the ground!
Surely such a thing is absolutely dependent on this 'theory of gravity', but it wasn't even mentioned!
There was no mention of gravitational forces, no mention of the inverse square law, and not a single reference to the quantum effects of gravity waves.
This clearly shows that the whole 'theory of gravity' is nonsense.
I'm so glad you've made this important point, Stan. The sooner we stop revering this silly 'theory of gravity' the better off we'll all be.
If you think the force of gravity is ignored by structural engineers, you are seriously misled. So your point is just an incorrect analogy. Better try again.
I know that, Stan
That's exactly my point.
If you think evolution is ignored by biologists and geneticists, then you are seriously misled.
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