Kenneth Blum^{1-4,18,20, 25,26}*, Eric R. Braverman³, Kai Uwe Lewandowski ^{4- 6}, Mark S Gold⁷, Eliot L Gardner⁸, Igor Elman^1,9, Merlene Oscar Berman¹⁰, Jean Lud Cadet¹¹, Alireza Sharafshah¹², Catherine A Dennen¹³, Abdalla Bowirrat¹, Albert Pinhasov,¹ David Baron^2,14, Chynna Levin³, Marjorie Gondre-Lewis¹⁵, Rajendra D Badgaiyan¹⁶, Jag Khalsa¹⁷, Keerthy Sunder^18,19, Kevin T Murphy²⁰, Milan T Makale²¹, Edward J Modestino²², Nicole Jafari^23,24, Foojan Zeine^25,26, Alexander PL Lewandrowski²⁷, Margaret A Madigan³,Brian S Fuehrlein²⁸ and Panayotis K Thanos^1,29

¹Department of Molecular Biology, Adelson School of Medicine, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
²Division of Addiction Research and Education, Center for Sports, Exercise and Mental Health, Western University of the Health Sciences, Pomona, CA, United States of America
³Division of Nutrigenomics, The Kenneth Blum Behavioral Neurogenetic Institute, Austin, TX United States of America
⁴Division of Personalized Pain Therapy and Education, Center for Advanced Spine Care of Southern Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
⁵Department of Orthopaedics, Fundación Universitaria Sanitas, Bogotá, DC, Colombia
⁶Department of Orthopedics at Hospital Universitário Gaffree Guinle Universidade Federal do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
⁷Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, United States of America
⁸Neuropsychopharmacology Section, Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, USA
⁹Cambridge Health Alliance, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA, United States of America
¹⁰Department of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine and VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, MA, United States of America
¹¹Molecular Neuropsychiatry Research Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD., United States of America
¹²Cellular and Molecular Research Center, School of Medicine, Guilan University of Medical Sciences, Rasht, Iran.
¹³Department of Family Medicine, Jefferson Health Northeast, Philadelphia, PA, United States of America
¹⁴Department of Psychiatry, Stanford University, School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA., United States of America
¹⁵Neuropsychopharmacology Laboratory, Department of Anatomy, Howard University College of Medicine, Washington, DC., United States of America
¹⁶Department of Psychiatry, Texas Tech University Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Lubbock, TX., United States of America
¹⁷Division of Therapeutics and Medical Consequences, Medical Consequences of Drug Abuse and Infections Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIH, Special Volunteer, Gaithersburg, MD., United States of America
¹⁸Karma Doctors and Karma TMS, and Suder Foundation, Palm Springs, CA, United States of America
¹⁹Department of Psychiatry, University of California, Riverside School of Medicine, Riverside, CA, United States of America
²⁰Division of Personalized Neuromodulation, PEAK LOGIC, LLC., Del Mar, CA., United States of America
²¹Department of Radiation Oncology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, United States of America
²²Brain and Behavior Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Curry College, Milton, MA., United States of America
²³Department of Applied Clinical Psychology, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology: Los Angeles, CA., USA
²⁴Division of Personalized Medicine, Cross-Cultural Research and Educational Institute, San Clemente, CA, USA
²⁵Awareness Integration Institute, San Clemente, CA, USA
²⁶Department of Health Science, California State University at Long Beach, Long Beach, CA, USA
²⁷Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA., USA
²⁸Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
²⁹Research Institute on Addictions, University of Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY, United States of America

*Corresponding Author: Kenneth Blum, Department of Molecular Biology, Adelson School of Medicine, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel.

Received: November 06, 2024; Published: December 17, 2024

Abstract

An article in BioEssays by Oxford biologist Denis Noble declared a Kuhnian “paradigm shift” away from the concept of junk DNA, suggesting that we need to eliminate the notion that genes only make proteins because our genome contains many “RNA genes that produce RNAs that induce vital functions”. Loudly, another article by Noble, this time in Nature, is calling for a major “rethink” of biology by charging that “It’s time to admit that genes are not the blueprint for life,” and criticizing the oversimplified and outdated view of biology often presented to the public. Noble emphasizes that while genes are important for life, it’s the “organism that controls the genome!” [1].

References

1. Noble D. “It’s time to admit that genes are not the blueprint for life”. Nature7998 (2024): 254-255.
2. Ball P. “How Life Works: A User's Guide to the New Biology”. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press (2023).
3. Venema D. “Intuitions, proteins, and evangelicals: a response to Undeniable. Sapientia (2018).
4. McClintock B. “The significance of responses of the genome to challenge”. Science 226 (1984): 792-801.
5. Blum K., et al. “Understanding the high mind: humans are still evolving genetically”. IIOAB Journal 1 (2010): 1-14.
6. Blum K., et al. “Identification of stress-induced epigenetic methylation onto dopamine D2 gene and neurological and behavioral consequences”. Gene and Protein in Disease 1 (2024): 1966.
7. Noble D. “Evolution is viewed from physics, physiology and medicine”. Interface Focus5 (2017): 20160159.
8. Duncan L. “Gene–Environment Interactions (G×E) in Behavioral Genetics. In: Rhee, S., Ronald, A. (eds) Behavior Genetics of Psychopathology. Advances in Behavior Genetics, vol 2. Springer, New York, NY (2014).
9. Gillette R., et al. “Two Hits of EDCs Three Generations Apart: Effects on Social Behaviors in Rats, and Analysis by Machine Learning”. Toxics1 (2022): 30.
10. Noble D. “Modern physiology vindicates Darwin's dream”. Experimental Physiology 9 (2022): 1015-1028.
11. Noble R and Noble D. “Was the Watchmaker Blind? Or Was She One-Eyed?” Biology (Basel)4 (2017): 47.
12. Noble D. “Genes and causation”. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences 1878 (2008): 3001-3015.
13. Noble D and Hunter P. “How to link genomics to physiology through epigenomics”. Epigenomics4 (2020): 285-287.
14. Noble D and Noble R. “Origins and demise of selfish gene theory”. Theoretical Biology Forum 1-2 (2022): 29-43.
15. Noble D. “The future: putting Humpty-Dumpty together again”. 
    Biochemical Society Transactions Pt1 (2003): 156-158.
16. Young AI., et al. “Multiple novel gene-by-environment interactions modify the effect of FTO variants on body mass index”. Nature Communications 7 (2016): 12724.
17. Razquin C., et al. “A 3-year intervention with a Mediterranean diet modified the association between the rs9939609 gene variant in FTO and body weight changes”. International Journal of Obesity (London) 2 (2010): 266-272.
18. Butlen-Ducuing F., et al. “DSM-5 and clinical trials in psychiatry: challenges to come?” Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 8 (2012): 583-584.
19. Casey BJ., et al. “DSM-5 and RDoC: progress in psychiatry research?” Nature Reviews Neuroscience 11 (2013): 810-814.
20. Hyman SE. “Can neuroscience be integrated into the DSM-V?” Nature Reviews Neuroscience 9 (2007): 725-732.
21. Hyman SE. “The diagnosis of mental disorders: the problem of reification”. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology 6 (2010): 155-179.
22. Lee YK., et al. “Opioid use disorder: current trends and potential treatments”. Frontiers in Public Health 11 (2024): 1274719.
23. Kawa S and Giordano J. “A brief historicity of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: issues and implications for the future of psychiatric canon and practice”. Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine 7 (2012): 2.
24. Kupfer DJ., et al. “Psychiatry's integration with medicine: the role of DSM-5”. Annual Review of Medicine 64 (2013): 385-392.
25. Blum K., et al. “Genetic addiction risk score (GARS)™, a predictor of vulnerability to opioid dependence”. Frontiers in Bioscience-Elite 1 (2018): 175-196.
26. Ceccanti M., et al. “Future Newborns with Opioid-Induced Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) Could Be Assessed with the Genetic Addiction Risk Severity (GARS) Test and Potentially Treated Using Precision Amino-Acid Enkephalinase Inhibition Therapy (KB220) as a Frontline Modality Instead of Potent Opioids”. Journal of Personalized Medicine 12 (2022): 2015.
27. Blum K., et al. “A Novel Precision Approach to Overcome the "Addiction Pandemic" by Incorporating Genetic Addiction Risk Severity (GARS) and Dopamine Homeostasis Restoration”. Journal of Personalized Medicine 3 (2021): 212.
28. Blum K., et al. “Futuristic Exploration of Addiction Neuroscience in the Genomic Era”. Psychology Research and Behavior Management 16 (2023): 4989-4991.
29. Blum K., et al. “Are We Getting High Cause the Thrill is Gone?” Journal of Addiction Psychiatry 1 (2023): 5-516.
30. Blum K., et al. “Researching Mitigation of Alcohol Binge Drinking in Polydrug Abuse: KCNK13 and RASGRF2 Gene (s) Risk Polymorphisms Coupled with Genetic Addiction Risk Severity (GARS) Guiding Precision Pro-Dopamine Regulation”. Journal of Personalized Medicine 6 (2022): 1009.
31. Blum K., et al. “Genetic Addiction Risk and Psychological Profiling Analyses for "Preaddiction" Severity Index”. Journal of Personalized Medicine 11 (2022): 1772.
32. Moran M., et al. “High Genetic Addiction Risk Score (GARS) in Chronically Prescribed Severe Chronic Opioid Probands Attending Multi-pain Clinics: an Open Clinical Pilot Trial”. Molecular Neurobiology 7 (2021): 3335-3346.
33. Thanos PK., et al. “Genetic Correlates as a Predictor of Bariatric Surgery Outcomes after 1 Year”. Biomedicines10 (2023): 2644.
34. Blum K., et al. “Exploration of Epigenetic State Hyperdopaminergia (Surfeit) and Genetic Trait Hypodopaminergia (Deficit) During Adolescent Brain Development”. Current Psychopharmacology 10 (2021).
35. Thanos PK., et al. “The First Exploratory Personalized Medicine Approach to Improve Bariatric Surgery Outcomes Utilizing Psychosocial and Genetic Risk Assessments: Encouraging Clinical Research”. Journal of Personalized Medicine 7 (2023): 1164.
36. Millan MJ., et al. “Learning from the past and looking to the future: Emerging perspectives for improving the treatment of psychiatric disorders”. European Neuropsychopharmacology 5 (2015): 599-656.
37. Blum K., et al. “Offering a putative neurobiological "dopamine homeostatic" solution to overcome the perils of the reward deficiency syndrome pandemic: emergence of "precision behavioral management". Annals of Translational Medicine 23 (2022): 1291.

Citation

Citation: Kenneth Blum., et al. “Time to Admit Genes and Epigenetics are Indeed the Blueprint for a Rewardful Life Whereby the Organism Controls the Genome”. Acta Scientific Neurology 8.1 (2025): 03-09.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2025 Kenneth Blum., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.