Exploring the Human Genome Map does not resolve all health-related issues. Furthermore, humans are incredibly complex organisms, making it challenging to influence personality and intelligence through genetic modification.
The remarkable advancement in molecular biology has placed genes (DNA) at the pinnacle of the living world, attributing to them the distinctive power that shapes humanity and the unity of the species. Statements from numerous renowned researchers underscore the decisive role of genes: “We have discovered the essence of life” (Francis Crick), “Genes themselves are the essence of life” (Richard Dawkins), and “Once we understand the entire Human Genome Map, we will know what it means to be human” – declared by the authors of the Human Genome Project. By reiterating these evaluations, media outlets inadvertently create a distorted image of the living world and instill in the public a fanciful hope that understanding the Human Genome Map will resolve all issues; that we will uncover the causes of all diseases and learn how to treat them, while genetic engineering will lead to the emergence of a “perfect human” and facilitate the construction of a truly wonderful new world.
Not Anthropology, Nor Genetics
Research and observation of various aspects of the Human Genome Map clearly indicate that human complexity is not merely a result of a greater number of genes, nor of fundamental differences compared to the genes of other higher animals. Perhaps the most significant achievement of the Human Genome Project is the affirmation that humans possess only a slightly higher number of genes compared to other animals (mice have about 30,000 genes, while humans have a few thousand more, depending on the standards set in the Genome Map). There is a substantial similarity between the human genome and that of chimpanzees, yet the two species are quite distinct.
Humans are highly complex organisms with a hierarchically organized structure, resulting from the evolutionary process of the animal world from lower to higher levels, with the primary distinction being the highly developed cortex and other regions of the brain. These are physical and morphological differences. However, humans also have fundamental and extraordinary qualities that set them apart from the animals that have evolved closest to them. These include self-awareness, the use of language, the ability for abstract thinking, altruism, a sense of freedom, conscience, and the entire richness of psychological life. There is undoubtedly a close relationship between human intelligence and the brain. Damage to the frontal lobe can lead to profound personality changes; injuries to the area known as Broca can eliminate the ability to speak… Emotional states can be modeled pharmacologically by influencing the signal transmission processes at synapses.
It is impossible to fully explain the concept of humanity through anthropology or genetics. The limits of human intellect and intelligence do not have a simple cause-and-effect relationship with genetic reserves. If such relationships were simple and causal, then the Human Genome Map (in short, DNA) would lack space for the genes encoding the richness of our spiritual life. Genes (DNA inherited from parents) play a certain role in the development of nerve cells, shaping the brain structure, forming channels and neural connections, and to some extent, they are responsible for the specialization of brain areas and the functions of brain modules, as well as signal transmission… However, genes certainly do not control inclinations, habits, talents, passions, actions, abilities, nor are they responsible for most illnesses.
Even during embryonic development, humans produce a limited number of nerve cells, but thanks to the “gaps” between these nerve cells, a vast network of new connections (synapses) is formed. The sheer size of the neural network is insufficient to explain, in terms of potential, the unlimited capabilities of human intelligence. The brain is not merely a computer network; it does not just receive signals from the environment (for example, visual signals), but also reproduces, analyzes, reacts to them, and assigns them emotional value and content, which computers cannot do at all. Recognition leads to new ideas.
Similar, Yet Different
Six billion people on Earth are genetically very similar. Yet each person is an independent entity, each possessing different personalities, consciousness, intelligence, and values, with varying emotional responses. Each brain is uniquely structured and functions differently, all uniquely formed from the moment of birth (and even earlier) to old age, dependent on interaction with specific environments. “You are the architect of your own brain; moreover, you only shape your brain when you use it,” asserts Dr. I.R Cohen, an immunologist from the Weizmann Institute in Israel. The cloning of humans with rich personalities, extraordinary intelligence, and various intellectual advantages is a fanciful endeavor, as not only DNA and genes determine individual psychological traits. Intelligence is not solely hidden within genes. It is essential to remember that we still know too little about memory, a fundamental component of intelligence. There is no gene for memory.
The doctrine of dependence: one gene, one enzyme, one function, has ultimately been overturned. Simultaneously, the idea of a simple causal relationship between genes and final traits, for which genes are responsible, has collapsed. We now know that the information contained in a gene can serve as a foundation for producing many different types of enzymes. Subsequently, the elements of various enzymes are capable of performing many different functions, depending on the environment and their interaction with other cellular elements and ions.
The world of living organisms is incredibly complex; at every level of our bodily organization, elements swim within cells, forming super-organs and cellular structures that continuously move, all of which depend on various transformations. The method of reproducing and analyzing living entities, even at the lowest organizational level of cells or tissues, allows us to identify the subject factors and seek simple dependencies between causes and effects. In biology, for the past half-century, a somewhat naive view has emerged that genes are the sole origin of all causes of physiological phenomena, developmental programs, and countless diseases. However, the reality is that living organisms are much more complex. Neither DNA, nor enzymes, nor other chemical elements, nor even viruses composed of enzymes and DNA, possess the characteristics of life. Only complex entities like cells exhibit such characteristics. Our quest to find the essence of our being largely remains an analytical reproduction: an effort to discover complex phenomena by identifying their constituent parts. And it often yields no results. From the list of constituent parts, for example, of a jet aircraft, we cannot know why it flies. Meanwhile, life is much more complex than an airplane.
The simplest living cells possess many complex organizational systems developed at a high level, which only come together to create the marvel of life. Any attempt to isolate them into individual components will immediately lead to the miraculous disappearance of that life. In biology over the past half-century, we have often judged the causes of many different phenomena (for example, obesity, diseases, criminal tendencies…) in terms of genes and DNA. However, these are the consequences of the activities of many genes and numerous factors outside of genes. In such a situation, neglecting even a single common link to achieve what is called gene therapy is simply naïve. Even in cases where diseases are caused by a single gene, gene therapy does not yield the desired results.
Therefore, intelligence or ignorance is not hidden within genes. There will be no gene found that is responsible for all diseases, as not all illnesses are determined by genes. For similar reasons, gene therapy can only treat certain diseases and cannot perfect human personality through genetic modification.
