So glad we have a biologist among us. and this does feed the determinist beast...
sorry about the smelly girl Preston :) Smell is a switch that really flips for women when they have children. My smell sense exploded when I had Rhi and smells can run me out of a room quicker than a prayer. Sense of smell protects us from disease, food poisoning, and genetic similars...very nifty. On Fri, Dec 5, 2008 at 5:01 PM, <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > *When in college there was this girl at my church who had a crush on me > (or at least she acted like she did). I had my own dorm room and** I am > sure I could've...um...taken advantage of the situation. We dated for a few > months, but I broke it off the day after Xmas that year.* > ** > *The thing was she had a distinctive scent that just turned me off. It > wasn't that she stunk or didn't have good hygeine; I just wasn't that much > attracted to her even though she was physically attractive. At the time, I > chalked it up to my religious ethics of not taking advantage of someone for > whom I had no feelings, yet the "smell factor" has always...er...lingered in > my olfact...,no, mind.* > ** > *What catches my attention about this abstract is that the MHC pushes > animals towards heterozygosity or heterogeny. Keeping the appropriate > amount of genetic (allelic) variation within populations is crucial for the > survival of that group. In addition to avoiding the weakness and defects > found in inbred, homozygous individuals within a group, it provides > sufficient mutant or more-varied strains at either end of the population > distribution that aids in survival from selective pressures presented by > conditions.* > ** > *Also, I think we are often influenced in our choices in life by unseen > forces. No, not the divine, but rather biological pressures that we are > mundanely unaware of and that we attribute to our conscious deliberation or > thought. Still, we must go through life thinking we are in control even > though the currents around us determine our course more than our visible > compass.* > ** > *Preston* > > ----- Original Message ----- > *From:* CrossBow <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > *To:* Memphis Freethought > Alliance<[email protected]> > *Sent:* Friday, December 05, 2008 10:26 AM > *Subject:* Major Histocompatibility Complex Alleles, Sexual Responsivity, > and Unfaithfulness in Romantic Couples > > That "Smell Factor" again... > > Major Histocompatibility Complex Alleles, Sexual Responsivity, and > Unfaithfulness in Romantic Couples > > Copyright Copyright (c) 2006 Association for Psychological Science > ABSTRACT > > *ABSTRACT—*Preferences for mates that possess genes dissimilar to one's > own at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), a polymorphic group of > loci associated with the immune system, have been found in mice, birds, > fish, and humans. These preferences may help individuals choose genetically > compatible mates and may adaptively function to prevent inbreeding or to > increase heterozygosity and thereby immunocompetence of offspring. > MHC-dissimilar mate preferences may influence the psychology of sexual > attraction. We investigated whether MHC similarity among romantically > involved couples (*N*= 48) predicted aspects of their sexual relationship. > All women in our sample normally ovulated, and alleles at three MHC loci > were typed for each person. As the proportion of MHC alleles couples shared > increased, women's sexual responsivity to their partners decreased, their > number of extrapair sexual partners increased, and their attraction to men > other than their primary partners increased, particularly during the fertile > phase of their cycles. > and... > Birth Control Pills Affect Women's Taste in Men How synthetic hormones > change desire in women--and their choice in a mate By Melinda Wenner > > This year 2.25 million Americans will get married—and a million will get > divorced. Could birth control be to blame for some of these breakups? Recent > research suggests that the contraceptive pill—which prevents women from > ovulating by fooling their body into believing it is pregnant—could affect > which types of men women desire. Going on or off the pill during a > relationship, therefore, may tempt a woman away from her man. > > It's all about scent. Hidden in a man's smell are clues about his major > histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes, which play an important role in > immune system surveillance. Studies suggest that females prefer the scent of > males whose MHC genes differ from their own, a preference that has probably > evolved because it helps offspring survive: couples with different MHC genes > are less likely to be related to each other than couples with similar genes > are, and their children are born with more varied MHC profiles and thus more > robust immune systems. > > A study published in August in the *Proceedings of the Royal Society B*, > however, suggests that women on the pill undergo a shift in preference > toward men who share similar MHC genes. The female subjects were more likely > to rate these genetically similar men's scents (via a T-shirt the men had > worn for two nights) as pleasant and desirable after they went on the pill > as compared with before. Although no one knows why the pill affects > attraction, some scientists believe that pregnancy—or in this case, the > hormonal changes that mimic pregnancy—draws women toward nurturing > relatives. > > Women who start or stop taking the pill, then, may be in for some > relationship problems. A study published last year in *Psychological > Science* found that women paired with MHC-similar men are less sexually > satisfied and more likely to cheat on their partners than women paired with > MHC-dissimilar men. So a woman on the pill, for example, might be more > likely to start dating a MHC-similar man, but he could ultimately leave her > less sexually satisfied. Then if she goes off the pill during the > relationship, the accompanying hormonal changes will draw her even more > strongly toward more MHC-dissimilar men. These immune genes may have a > "powerful effect in terms of how well relationships are cemented," says > University of Liverpool psychologist Craig Roberts, co-author of the August > paper. > > *Note: This article was originally published with the title, "A Tough Pill > to Swallow".* > > > > -- > gnothe se auton > > > -- gnothe se auton --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Memphis Freethought Alliance" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/memphisfreethoughtalliance?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
