Chris Cantell Discusses Science: A team of scientists has discovered the gene that makes us tall by Corina Ciubotaru

A group of scientists have discovered a gene that influences our height by a centimeter. It was decided that the gene's name should be HMGA2 and the analysis results show that it makes people taller by one centimeter when it is found in pairs in the "tall" version. The "short" version in pairs is responsible for people being one centimeter shorter. But it's not only height it influences. Genes like this also play a role in a person's organ development and in the development of cancer cells, so this discovery may lead to other important finds in the area. It has already been proven that taller people pose higher risks of developing prostate, bladder and lung cancer and now doctors will be able to tell if a person's increasing height is due to normal gene make-up or a disease. Tall and short people are each prone to certain medical conditions such as cancer for tall people and heart disease for short people.The finds come after the team of scientists analyzed the entire genomes of 5,000 white Europeans who also gave information about their height and weight. But the height is a complex characteristic that isn't influenced by only one gene. Several genes are involved in the process of making us little or big and over time, science will find what each of them influences most. Only then will genetics really take off as the way future humans make their babies: will they want to leave the child as he was naturally formed, or begin to shape him before he even leaves the woom?

related story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6975865.stm

by Corina Ciubotaru for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

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Edited by: Katarina Zerzanova