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When a Gene Makes You Smell Like a Fish: and Other Amazing Tales About the Genes in Your Body

by Lisa Seachrist Chiu - £12.99  Oxford University Press (2007)
paperback    ISBN 13: 9780195327069 | ISBN 10: 0195327063

From the gene that causes people to age prematurely to the "bitter gene" that may spawn broccoli haters, this book explores a few of the more exotic locales on the human genome, highlighting some of the tragic and bizarre ways our bodies go wrong when genes fall prey to mutation and the curious ways in which genes have evolved for our survival.
 
Lisa Seachrist Chiu offers here a smogasbord of stories about rare and not so rare genetic qurks - the gene that makes some people smell like a fish, the Black Urine Gene, the Werewolf Gene, the Calico Cat Gene. We read about the Dracula Gene, a mutation in zebra fish that causes blood cells to explode on contact with light, and suites of genes that also influence behaviour and physical characteristics. And Wilson's Disease, a gene defect that fails to clear copper from the body, which can trigger symptoms of schizophrenia and other neurological symptoms, can be fatal if left untreated.
 
While fascinating us with stories of genetic peculiarities, Chiu also manages to explain much cutting edge research in modern genetics, resulting in a book that is both informative and entertaining. It is a must read for everyone who loves popular science or is curious about the human body.

(Price & availability last checked: August 2018)

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