A major new study of genetics, controversial due to fears its conclusions could be used to empower those who seek to harm or change LGBTQ people, reveals that sexual orientation is a complicated thing, influenced by many factors, genetic and otherwise.
The NYT reports: “There might be thousands of genes influencing same-sex sexual behavior, each playing a small role, scientists believe. The new study found that all genetic effects likely account for about 32 percent of whether someone will have same-sex sex. Using a big-data technique called genome-wide association, the researchers estimated that common genetic variants — single-letter differences in DNA sequences — account for between 8 percent and 25 percent of same-sex sexual behavior. The rest of the 32 percent might involve genetic effects they could not measure, they said.”
The study analyzed 408,000 men and women from the U.K. Biobank between the ages of 40 and 69, and 70,000 customers of 23andMe with an average age of 51: “The researchers mainly focused on answers to one question: whether someone ever had sex with a same-sex partner, even once.”
Read more on the study HERE.
