1 00:00:14,747 --> 00:00:16,544 Imagine a world where we could look in 2 00:00:16,682 --> 00:00:19,708 to our future by looking at our genes. 3 00:00:23,555 --> 00:00:26,752 A world where a machine could study the genetic information 4 00:00:26,892 --> 00:00:30,225 locked away in just one drop of blood. 5 00:00:34,533 --> 00:00:38,401 And predict details of a life from birth until death. 6 00:00:43,175 --> 00:00:45,541 Could this fantasy ever come true? 7 00:00:46,078 --> 00:00:49,172 To what extent does DNA shape our destiny? 8 00:00:51,483 --> 00:00:55,783 In the 21st Century, we are about to find out. 9 00:01:27,152 --> 00:01:31,748 This remarkable journey to a world of prediction starts here, 10 00:01:32,991 --> 00:01:34,549 in the human cell. 11 00:01:41,567 --> 00:01:44,968 And at the heart of the cell is the greatest prize of all, 12 00:01:46,939 --> 00:01:48,964 the 46 chromosomes which between them 13 00:01:49,108 --> 00:01:52,942 contain all the genes needed to build a human being. 14 00:01:55,047 --> 00:01:57,208 The genes are a book of information 15 00:01:57,349 --> 00:02:00,079 that describe how each human being will develop, 16 00:02:00,219 --> 00:02:01,982 and we can now read that book, 17 00:02:02,121 --> 00:02:04,248 and for the very first time we're going to 18 00:02:04,389 --> 00:02:07,415 be able to see inside of every human being. 19 00:02:13,031 --> 00:02:17,024 As we decipher the information contained within these genes, 20 00:02:17,169 --> 00:02:19,535 we are not only learning how to build a human, 21 00:02:19,671 --> 00:02:21,070 but also how to predict 22 00:02:21,206 --> 00:02:24,141 what characteristics that human might have. 23 00:02:25,477 --> 00:02:29,675 We have new genetic techniques that allows us to look at personality, 24 00:02:29,815 --> 00:02:32,409 the same way that we would look at eye colour. 25 00:02:32,551 --> 00:02:35,076 We can actually look at the molecules that are involved in. 26 00:02:35,220 --> 00:02:36,915 That's really exciting. 27 00:02:40,626 --> 00:02:43,823 Could a gene really predict whether you would do this. 28 00:02:43,962 --> 00:02:45,793 As you step off, if you don't do anything, 29 00:02:45,931 --> 00:02:48,729 you have 14 seconds to live. 30 00:02:51,603 --> 00:02:54,902 Cr predict who will be prone to murderous impulses. 31 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:57,201 There is such a thing as a natural born killer. 32 00:03:01,113 --> 00:03:04,173 Cr even predict your ultimate end? 33 00:03:04,316 --> 00:03:05,806 People with those strength versions of the gene 34 00:03:05,951 --> 00:03:08,044 seem to be dying a little bit younger. 35 00:03:09,688 --> 00:03:11,781 Everyday, we are learning more about what can 36 00:03:11,924 --> 00:03:13,323 and cannot be predicted 37 00:03:13,458 --> 00:03:17,588 from the mysterious substance that is our DNA. 38 00:03:21,033 --> 00:03:25,299 It's amazing to think that this translucent slime 39 00:03:25,437 --> 00:03:28,497 that we have here is DNA. 40 00:03:30,742 --> 00:03:32,573 Nobel Prize winner, Paul Nurse, 41 00:03:32,711 --> 00:03:35,771 has spent much of his career studying DNA. 42 00:03:37,482 --> 00:03:42,181 Everything about us is determined by the structure of this DNA, 43 00:03:42,421 --> 00:03:46,221 whether we have blue eyes or brown hair, a big nose, 44 00:03:46,358 --> 00:03:49,156 whether we'll suffer from certain diseases, 45 00:03:49,294 --> 00:03:51,091 like cystic fibrosis. 46 00:03:52,764 --> 00:03:54,755 Maybe even one day in the future, 47 00:03:54,900 --> 00:03:58,097 perhaps it can be used to predict our behaviour, 48 00:03:58,403 --> 00:04:01,600 all by knowing the structure of this molecule. 49 00:04:05,911 --> 00:04:10,610 But how can these tiny drops of DNA be used to make predictions? 50 00:04:22,261 --> 00:04:25,321 Here, at the Army Training Headquarters at Bassingbourn, 51 00:04:25,464 --> 00:04:27,432 an experiment is about to begin. 52 00:04:32,204 --> 00:04:33,671 These new recruits are taking part 53 00:04:33,805 --> 00:04:37,002 in one of the first scientific studies of gene prediction, 54 00:04:37,142 --> 00:04:39,076 an attempt to see if a single gene, 55 00:04:39,211 --> 00:04:43,238 called the ACE gene, can predict how these recruits will perform. 56 00:04:46,451 --> 00:04:49,784 The man behind this ground-breaking study is Hugh Montgomery. 57 00:04:52,457 --> 00:04:54,322 He believes that by studying these recruits 58 00:04:54,459 --> 00:04:58,520 he can unlock one of the key genes that determines long life. 59 00:05:00,098 --> 00:05:01,360 We've chosen to use the army 60 00:05:01,500 --> 00:05:03,900 for these sorts of studies for very good reasons. 61 00:05:04,036 --> 00:05:05,435 If we take these recruits here, 62 00:05:05,570 --> 00:05:08,403 we're looking at people we can choose to be the same age, 63 00:05:08,540 --> 00:05:11,976 the same sex, they're eating the same food, 64 00:05:12,110 --> 00:05:13,407 they're drinking the same water, 65 00:05:13,545 --> 00:05:15,012 being shouted at by the same people, 66 00:05:15,147 --> 00:05:16,546 wearing the same sorts of clothing, 67 00:05:16,682 --> 00:05:19,242 and undergoing absolutely identical training. 68 00:05:20,385 --> 00:05:22,478 Montgomery is testing the DNA of each of 69 00:05:22,621 --> 00:05:25,283 the 80 recruits taking part in the study. 70 00:05:32,164 --> 00:05:34,496 By examining their genes he thinks he can 71 00:05:34,633 --> 00:05:37,124 predict which of the recruits has the endurance to deal 72 00:05:37,269 --> 00:05:39,794 with the gruelling demands of army training. 73 00:05:44,009 --> 00:05:45,567 And finding out which of the recruits 74 00:05:45,711 --> 00:05:50,273 can run further may also allow him 75 00:05:50,415 --> 00:05:52,383 to predict which will live longer. 76 00:05:54,219 --> 00:05:57,245 In later life, it is quite likely that these sorts of genes 77 00:05:57,389 --> 00:06:00,256 we're looking at will affect their long term survival. 78 00:06:05,697 --> 00:06:08,689 One of the soldiers being studied is Ian McDermott. 79 00:06:14,072 --> 00:06:18,566 Ian is 17 years old, and endurance is not his strong point. 80 00:06:21,780 --> 00:06:23,372 He's worried he might not keep up 81 00:06:23,515 --> 00:06:25,779 when he has to do long distant runs. 82 00:06:28,253 --> 00:06:30,050 The only thing I had doubts about was the runs, 83 00:06:30,188 --> 00:06:32,486 because I'm not a big long distance runner, 84 00:06:32,624 --> 00:06:34,091 like four, five, six miles, 85 00:06:34,226 --> 00:06:36,126 I can't really do it, I sort of think... 86 00:06:41,500 --> 00:06:43,195 I thought it was going to be impossible, 87 00:06:43,335 --> 00:06:47,431 and that it was going to be like running 15, 16, 17 miles everyday, 88 00:06:47,572 --> 00:06:51,064 but it's not. But it's not - it's not easy. 89 00:06:53,145 --> 00:06:55,113 When it comes to long distance running, 90 00:06:55,247 --> 00:06:57,715 Ian's genes may be letting him down. 91 00:06:59,384 --> 00:07:01,181 Look back at his family and it's clear 92 00:07:01,319 --> 00:07:03,810 he comes from a long line of bad runners. 93 00:07:04,055 --> 00:07:06,922 I once ran a mile because I had to, that was it. 94 00:07:07,058 --> 00:07:09,686 There after I never ran more than 200 metres in my life. 95 00:07:09,828 --> 00:07:13,787 Ian's very much of the same short, sharp stuff that I was. 96 00:07:13,932 --> 00:07:16,560 Which is why I really worried that he'll drop out. 97 00:07:16,701 --> 00:07:17,793 I don't want him to drop out. 98 00:07:17,936 --> 00:07:19,267 Even though I don't want him to be in the army, 99 00:07:19,404 --> 00:07:20,632 I don't want him to drop out. 100 00:07:23,708 --> 00:07:24,868 At the end of 10 weeks, 101 00:07:25,010 --> 00:07:28,605 the squad's athletic performance will be compared with their genes. 102 00:07:29,314 --> 00:07:31,214 Although this is just one study, 103 00:07:31,349 --> 00:07:33,283 the implications of this sort of 104 00:07:33,418 --> 00:07:36,080 research for every one of us are huge. 105 00:07:36,388 --> 00:07:39,516 The idea that our destiny could lie in our genes 106 00:07:39,658 --> 00:07:43,389 is about to change the way we live forever. 107 00:07:50,001 --> 00:07:52,663 We are not in a position to really predict a life, 108 00:07:52,804 --> 00:07:54,362 but we can certainly say more about 109 00:07:54,506 --> 00:07:56,974 a person like Ian than ever before. 110 00:07:59,744 --> 00:08:02,338 More and more, we are finding that the unique characteristics 111 00:08:02,481 --> 00:08:06,850 that make us all individuals can in some way be traced back; 112 00:08:12,390 --> 00:08:13,379 traced back to the moment 113 00:08:13,525 --> 00:08:16,460 when a unique mix of genes was created: 114 00:08:22,767 --> 00:08:25,292 Back to the moment of conception. 115 00:08:34,779 --> 00:08:37,407 In each one of our lives, the moment of conception 116 00:08:37,549 --> 00:08:40,177 marked the beginning of an extraordinary journey. 117 00:08:42,854 --> 00:08:45,118 A journey that saw the 23 chromosomes 118 00:08:45,257 --> 00:08:47,225 carried in our father's sperm 119 00:08:49,895 --> 00:08:54,298 combine with the 23 chromosomes inside our mother's egg, 120 00:08:55,667 --> 00:08:59,933 to form the distinct set of instructions that we call our genome. 121 00:09:03,074 --> 00:09:06,373 Cur DNA is inherited from our parents, 122 00:09:06,511 --> 00:09:08,536 and yet we are different from them. 123 00:09:14,319 --> 00:09:16,150 Each one of us can look at our parents 124 00:09:16,288 --> 00:09:18,779 and see them reflected in ourselves. 125 00:09:21,826 --> 00:09:24,818 But how is this information passed on? 126 00:09:26,698 --> 00:09:29,792 In the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, 127 00:09:29,935 --> 00:09:34,338 scientists began to realise that there were patterns of inheritance 128 00:09:34,472 --> 00:09:38,374 which could make sense of the confusing hereditary 129 00:09:38,510 --> 00:09:41,138 that they'd recognised up to that point. 130 00:09:42,080 --> 00:09:43,342 And then they could start applying 131 00:09:43,481 --> 00:09:45,506 these principles to human beings, 132 00:09:45,650 --> 00:09:46,981 particularly the freak shows 133 00:09:47,118 --> 00:09:49,143 at the beginning of the 20th Century. 134 00:10:07,372 --> 00:10:10,967 In the early 1900s, scientists realised the best way to discover 135 00:10:11,109 --> 00:10:13,077 how ordinary characteristics are passed 136 00:10:13,211 --> 00:10:16,237 on was by first studying the extraordinary. 137 00:10:18,483 --> 00:10:20,644 Families with unfortunate inherited diseases 138 00:10:20,785 --> 00:10:24,744 would provide key insights in to how our genes are transmitted. 139 00:10:27,492 --> 00:10:28,925 And here, in Coney Island, 140 00:10:29,060 --> 00:10:31,893 the scientists found exactly what they were looking for, 141 00:10:32,530 --> 00:10:35,966 endless examples of families with physical deformities. 142 00:10:43,074 --> 00:10:45,338 The shows still exist on Coney Island, 143 00:10:46,277 --> 00:10:48,575 and Tony works here as an entertainer. 144 00:10:49,614 --> 00:10:51,980 Tony has a condition called achondroplasia, 145 00:10:52,117 --> 00:10:54,415 a form of growth retardation. 146 00:10:55,854 --> 00:10:58,914 For Tony and his family, the condition appears random. 147 00:10:59,357 --> 00:11:03,088 It seems to hide, skip generations, and then reappear. 148 00:11:05,530 --> 00:11:07,862 It could pass 12 generations before 149 00:11:07,999 --> 00:11:10,092 another one pops up in my family again. 150 00:11:10,235 --> 00:11:12,226 It's just - it's just odd. 151 00:11:14,973 --> 00:11:18,374 Tony's mother is like him, but his son is not, 152 00:11:18,543 --> 00:11:20,670 and Tony is unsure what the risks are 153 00:11:20,812 --> 00:11:24,077 of the deformity reappearing in future generations. 154 00:11:24,616 --> 00:11:27,016 I have a three year old son, his name's Antonio. 155 00:11:27,152 --> 00:11:29,347 He's about - if I stand up, 156 00:11:29,487 --> 00:11:31,455 he's about up to my shoulders already. 157 00:11:31,723 --> 00:11:33,088 According to my specialist, 158 00:11:33,224 --> 00:11:36,284 my son will be between six two to six eight. 159 00:11:37,929 --> 00:11:39,920 But that don't say that because he's tall, 160 00:11:40,331 --> 00:11:43,300 one of my grandchildren may come out to be like me. 161 00:11:43,435 --> 00:11:44,402 We don't know. 162 00:11:44,669 --> 00:11:46,261 We don't know until the time comes. 163 00:11:57,382 --> 00:12:01,341 Tony is happy not knowing, but if he really wanted to, 164 00:12:01,486 --> 00:12:04,922 he could find out the odds of having another child with his condition. 165 00:12:05,623 --> 00:12:08,217 The scientists who worked at Coney Island a 100 years ago, 166 00:12:08,359 --> 00:12:09,690 showed that genetic diseases, 167 00:12:09,828 --> 00:12:13,025 like Tony's, follow a very predictable pattern. 168 00:12:15,166 --> 00:12:18,192 Examining freak shows and the sorts of abnormalities 169 00:12:18,336 --> 00:12:20,531 that were being inherited in families, 170 00:12:20,672 --> 00:12:25,405 revealed patterns which allowed scientists to 171 00:12:25,543 --> 00:12:29,809 predict the probability of a child 172 00:12:29,948 --> 00:12:33,213 inheriting a particular defect or deformity. 173 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:39,486 So out of this chaos, real order began to emerge, 174 00:12:39,624 --> 00:12:42,752 and that order was really the beginning of human genetics. 175 00:12:47,532 --> 00:12:49,591 But while 20th Century geneticists 176 00:12:49,734 --> 00:12:52,635 could predict the odds of a disease being passed on, 177 00:12:53,271 --> 00:12:57,833 they could not give the precise yes or no that most parents wanted. 178 00:13:05,016 --> 00:13:07,450 But the science of prediction has improved. 179 00:13:09,187 --> 00:13:10,620 Four years ago, Catherine Linnett 180 00:13:10,755 --> 00:13:13,189 set out looking for precise answers. 181 00:13:13,391 --> 00:13:17,225 She was hoping to track down a gene and solve her family mystery. 182 00:13:18,830 --> 00:13:20,127 I remember my grandmother telling me 183 00:13:20,265 --> 00:13:23,496 when I was small that it was a curse. 184 00:13:23,635 --> 00:13:25,728 We used to sit there and she would tell us this story, 185 00:13:25,870 --> 00:13:29,169 and we used to imagine what this awful thing was 186 00:13:29,307 --> 00:13:31,832 that this person must have done. 187 00:13:36,815 --> 00:13:40,751 According to family legend, the curse began 500 years ago, 188 00:13:41,152 --> 00:13:43,313 when one of Catherine's ancestors, 189 00:13:43,454 --> 00:13:46,946 a clergyman, had his prize apples stolen. 190 00:13:49,961 --> 00:13:52,429 Mad with rage, he cursed the unknown thief, 191 00:13:52,564 --> 00:13:55,692 calling on God to remove the thief's fingers. 192 00:14:02,140 --> 00:14:03,539 Later, to his horror, 193 00:14:03,675 --> 00:14:07,634 the clergyman discovered that the thief was his own pregnant wife. 194 00:14:09,814 --> 00:14:13,079 Legend has it that the curse fell upon their baby, 195 00:14:14,819 --> 00:14:17,379 who was born without fingers. 196 00:14:21,426 --> 00:14:24,827 Catherine was born with deformed hands. 197 00:14:24,963 --> 00:14:29,024 Where her fingers should be are ten shortened nailless digits 198 00:14:29,167 --> 00:14:30,964 that stop at the first joint. 199 00:14:34,105 --> 00:14:36,630 It is never the same in two different people. 200 00:14:36,774 --> 00:14:38,969 We have various length fingers. 201 00:14:39,110 --> 00:14:41,101 My brother's fingers are longer than mine, 202 00:14:41,246 --> 00:14:43,373 my mother's fingers are longer than mine, 203 00:14:43,514 --> 00:14:45,573 but my grandmother's were shorter, 204 00:14:45,717 --> 00:14:49,084 so it varies from person to person. 205 00:14:50,188 --> 00:14:52,486 The condition is known as brachydactylly, 206 00:14:54,826 --> 00:14:57,056 and although very little is understood about it, 207 00:14:57,195 --> 00:14:59,993 it is clear that something in the womb goes wrong. 208 00:15:02,867 --> 00:15:06,359 The palms develop properly, but the fingers do not. 209 00:15:15,413 --> 00:15:19,679 Deformed or webbed fingers appear and disappear through the generations. 210 00:15:24,589 --> 00:15:27,183 Catherine's two daughters do not have the condition, 211 00:15:27,325 --> 00:15:29,293 but her son, David, does. 212 00:15:30,628 --> 00:15:33,392 He had to have surgery when he was very young 213 00:15:33,531 --> 00:15:36,466 to have the webbed fingers separated, 214 00:15:36,601 --> 00:15:39,570 and he inherited my thumbs, 215 00:15:39,704 --> 00:15:42,298 which have an extra bone in each thumb. 216 00:15:42,440 --> 00:15:45,000 So he had to have quite a lot of reconstructive surgery 217 00:15:45,143 --> 00:15:48,544 on his hands when he was 18 months old. 218 00:15:50,481 --> 00:15:54,417 Catherine wants to know exactly what causes the family deformity, 219 00:15:54,852 --> 00:15:57,252 which particular gene is responsible. 220 00:15:57,989 --> 00:16:01,220 Find it, and the family curse can be put to rest. 221 00:16:07,332 --> 00:16:09,892 And today, this is a possibility. 222 00:16:10,835 --> 00:16:12,598 For the first time in human history, 223 00:16:12,737 --> 00:16:15,968 we can peer in to our children's genetic future; 224 00:16:20,144 --> 00:16:24,774 thanks to a discovery made in 1953 in Cambridge by two young men, 225 00:16:24,916 --> 00:16:27,578 James Watson and Francis Crick. 226 00:16:31,389 --> 00:16:34,415 We're clearly specified to a high degree of detail, 227 00:16:34,559 --> 00:16:39,326 and yet half that information is carried in the head of the sperm, 228 00:16:40,498 --> 00:16:43,934 and that head is very small, about the size of a pinpoint. 229 00:16:45,837 --> 00:16:48,738 How can so much information be contained 230 00:16:48,873 --> 00:16:51,307 in such an exceedingly tiny space? 231 00:16:53,077 --> 00:16:55,204 Crick, with his colleague James Watson, 232 00:16:55,346 --> 00:16:59,612 battled to understand how tiny, almost invisible cells, 233 00:16:59,751 --> 00:17:03,380 can store all the information needed to build a human. 234 00:17:04,155 --> 00:17:08,148 Their answer, when it came, was simple and beautiful. 235 00:17:08,292 --> 00:17:11,750 What Watson and Crick did was to work out the structure of DNA, 236 00:17:11,896 --> 00:17:14,888 that is how the molecules of DNA are put together, 237 00:17:15,033 --> 00:17:17,558 and when they looked at that, they realised 238 00:17:17,702 --> 00:17:22,071 that the structure consisted of a series of chemical letters, 239 00:17:22,206 --> 00:17:27,337 and that the code of life was written in those four chemical letters. 240 00:17:31,949 --> 00:17:35,248 The language of DNA is written in a four letter alphabet 241 00:17:35,386 --> 00:17:38,184 that corresponds to four chemical basis. 242 00:17:39,824 --> 00:17:47,754 A for adenine, C for cytosine, G for guanine, and T for Thiamine. 243 00:17:49,100 --> 00:17:50,567 And it's these groups of letters 244 00:17:50,701 --> 00:17:55,638 that spell out chunks of information that we now call our genes. 245 00:17:57,075 --> 00:17:59,236 The structure of DNA determined by Crick 246 00:17:59,377 --> 00:18:01,402 and Watson in the early 1950s was 247 00:18:01,546 --> 00:18:06,313 the greatest discovery in biology of the 20th Century. 248 00:18:08,853 --> 00:18:11,617 It's revolutionised our understanding of genetics, 249 00:18:11,756 --> 00:18:15,624 it's revolutionised how we carry out biology and medicine, 250 00:18:15,760 --> 00:18:19,127 and we're still living with the fruits of that revolution today. 251 00:18:27,438 --> 00:18:29,235 The Linnett family are about to harvest 252 00:18:29,373 --> 00:18:31,432 some of the benefits of this revolution. 253 00:18:32,143 --> 00:18:32,768 For the first time, 254 00:18:32,910 --> 00:18:35,208 relatives Catherine didn't even know existed 255 00:18:35,346 --> 00:18:38,179 have travelled from all over the country to be together. 256 00:18:43,321 --> 00:18:44,754 And, for the first time, 257 00:18:45,356 --> 00:18:48,291 they have an explanation for the family condition. 258 00:18:49,494 --> 00:18:50,984 The fact that my grandmother said that 259 00:18:51,129 --> 00:18:54,326 it was a curse, it never rang true. 260 00:18:55,066 --> 00:18:59,059 It is just a gene that went wrong generations ago 261 00:18:59,203 --> 00:19:03,162 that has just been passed on through the generations. 262 00:19:03,574 --> 00:19:06,304 In every member of the family with a deformity, 263 00:19:06,444 --> 00:19:09,379 there is a spelling mistake in the genetic code. 264 00:19:12,383 --> 00:19:17,184 On chromosome 9, the letter C has been turned in to the letter A. 265 00:19:17,655 --> 00:19:21,614 It's a tiny error, but the impact is huge. 266 00:19:21,959 --> 00:19:24,723 Just this one letter change out of billions is 267 00:19:24,862 --> 00:19:27,854 enough to disrupt the building of a human hand. 268 00:19:30,234 --> 00:19:31,758 After years of searching, 269 00:19:31,903 --> 00:19:35,031 Catherine now knows what causes her deformity. 270 00:19:35,173 --> 00:19:39,337 It's been suggested we call ourselves the Stumpy Club, and... 271 00:19:40,912 --> 00:19:43,005 And through the search for the gene she has 272 00:19:43,147 --> 00:19:46,810 also found a wider family she had never previously met. 273 00:19:47,552 --> 00:19:50,316 I felt, probably for the first time ever, 274 00:19:50,454 --> 00:19:52,422 that I can really be me, 275 00:19:52,557 --> 00:19:54,252 and I can use my hands and 276 00:19:54,392 --> 00:19:56,622 not think that people are looking and starring, 277 00:19:56,761 --> 00:20:00,197 and it's just been - it's been great. 278 00:20:01,999 --> 00:20:03,591 It's an extraordinary conclusion to 279 00:20:03,734 --> 00:20:07,033 a 500 year old mystery for the Linnett family, 280 00:20:07,505 --> 00:20:09,803 allowing them to finally put to rest the idea 281 00:20:09,941 --> 00:20:11,806 that the family is cursed. 282 00:20:14,378 --> 00:20:17,245 And, by showing how finger development can go wrong, 283 00:20:17,548 --> 00:20:19,345 it's provided another small piece 284 00:20:19,483 --> 00:20:22,350 in the complicated puzzle of how to build a human. 285 00:20:38,769 --> 00:20:42,000 But if we can read the instructions that build us, 286 00:20:42,139 --> 00:20:44,573 does that mean that one day we will be able to 287 00:20:44,709 --> 00:20:48,236 use this information to actually predict a life. 288 00:20:49,914 --> 00:20:51,347 Here, at the beginning of the 21st Century, 289 00:20:51,482 --> 00:20:53,507 we can see what's going to happen. 290 00:20:53,951 --> 00:20:56,112 We can see where this technology is taking us, 291 00:20:56,254 --> 00:20:57,983 and it's taking us towards a point 292 00:20:58,122 --> 00:21:02,786 where we will have this individual information on people. 293 00:21:09,433 --> 00:21:12,698 We'd be able to predict from day one how tall they would become, 294 00:21:12,837 --> 00:21:14,236 what colour their hair would be, 295 00:21:14,372 --> 00:21:15,304 what colour their eyes would be, 296 00:21:15,439 --> 00:21:17,430 whether they would need to wear glasses or not. 297 00:21:17,575 --> 00:21:21,602 All of these physical characteristics can be predicted from the genes. 298 00:21:24,782 --> 00:21:28,650 We're going to be able to see the future before it happens. 299 00:21:32,556 --> 00:21:35,889 But how can a string of DNA, a string of letters, 300 00:21:36,027 --> 00:21:39,463 control our body's development in so many different ways? 301 00:21:44,201 --> 00:21:45,566 Take Ian, for example. 302 00:21:46,404 --> 00:21:48,634 When he was born, he was 20 inches long. 303 00:21:51,108 --> 00:21:54,874 17 years later, and he has grown to over six feet. 304 00:21:58,215 --> 00:22:00,080 It's a remarkable transformation, 305 00:22:00,785 --> 00:22:02,514 and we are finally beginning to understand 306 00:22:02,653 --> 00:22:05,679 how our genes control this everyday miracle. 307 00:22:17,868 --> 00:22:21,895 Each gene is too valuable to risk leaving the nucleus of the cell, 308 00:22:27,044 --> 00:22:28,841 so it makes a copy of itself, 309 00:22:28,979 --> 00:22:31,971 and sends this in to the minefield outside. 310 00:22:42,360 --> 00:22:46,126 This copy makes the long journey to a distant part of the cell, 311 00:22:46,263 --> 00:22:50,165 called a ribosome, the production line of the cell. 312 00:22:55,039 --> 00:22:57,303 And here, with mind boggling precision, 313 00:22:57,441 --> 00:23:00,342 the genetic instructions are read, 314 00:23:02,313 --> 00:23:05,111 and a specific molecule is constructed. 315 00:23:09,220 --> 00:23:11,188 From the cells of your heart, 316 00:23:14,625 --> 00:23:18,117 to the blood rushing through every artery of the body, 317 00:23:19,663 --> 00:23:21,392 to the hair on your head, 318 00:23:25,803 --> 00:23:28,966 this is the way that humans are built. 319 00:23:32,410 --> 00:23:35,675 And now we understand the magical process of growth, 320 00:23:35,946 --> 00:23:37,675 we are able to manipulate it. 321 00:23:39,817 --> 00:23:42,786 Inside these bottles is the human hormone, 322 00:23:44,488 --> 00:23:51,826 made by living organisms that are not creations of nature, but of science. 323 00:23:58,803 --> 00:24:00,464 And this is who it's for. 324 00:24:01,005 --> 00:24:04,600 Edward Hewlett is four years old, and unusually small. 325 00:24:06,911 --> 00:24:10,711 We noticed Edward was short for his age at about three years old, 326 00:24:10,848 --> 00:24:12,839 and then we kept a close eye on it 327 00:24:12,983 --> 00:24:15,508 and the doctors had him in to the growth clinic. 328 00:24:15,653 --> 00:24:18,520 And he was always a fairly small baby, 329 00:24:18,656 --> 00:24:20,021 so we knew that, you know, 330 00:24:20,157 --> 00:24:22,819 he wasn't -things weren't a 100% right. 331 00:24:24,595 --> 00:24:28,224 Edward's body is not producing enough of a particular hormone, 332 00:24:28,833 --> 00:24:29,857 growth hormone, 333 00:24:31,335 --> 00:24:35,101 so Edward now has to rely on something artificially produced. 334 00:24:36,907 --> 00:24:39,842 We give Edward the growth hormone injection in the evening, 335 00:24:39,977 --> 00:24:40,909 before bed. 336 00:24:42,780 --> 00:24:45,010 So he'll have his bath and his bedtime story, 337 00:24:45,149 --> 00:24:47,014 and then we give him his injection. 338 00:24:47,151 --> 00:24:49,711 This is because the growth hormone actually works at night. 339 00:24:51,455 --> 00:24:52,820 It's one injection in the evenings, 340 00:24:52,957 --> 00:24:55,926 and he's just a very brave little boy with it. 341 00:24:56,060 --> 00:24:59,325 What we do, is we wipe your legs so it's all clean, 342 00:24:59,463 --> 00:25:04,491 don't we, and then we put it in, and we count, one... 343 00:25:04,635 --> 00:25:11,734 One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. 344 00:25:11,876 --> 00:25:14,140 That's very good, isn't it. 345 00:25:22,419 --> 00:25:26,879 The synthetic growth hormone has exactly the same effect on Edward's body 346 00:25:27,024 --> 00:25:29,083 as if it was made by his own cells. 347 00:25:32,630 --> 00:25:36,430 But the hormone that is inside him is anything but ordinary. 348 00:25:40,271 --> 00:25:41,704 While Edward sleeps, 349 00:25:42,806 --> 00:25:46,970 200 miles away in a laboratory, something is happening. 350 00:25:50,314 --> 00:25:52,976 Contained within this dish are bacteria 351 00:25:53,117 --> 00:25:55,745 that will be working throughout the night for Edward. 352 00:26:01,492 --> 00:26:04,484 Incredibly, these bacteria are part human. 353 00:26:05,029 --> 00:26:07,520 Their genes are no longer entirely their own. 354 00:26:08,098 --> 00:26:11,534 Instead, a human gene, the growth hormone gene, 355 00:26:11,669 --> 00:26:15,765 has been patched in to their genetic make-up, and so, 356 00:26:15,906 --> 00:26:17,373 throughout the night, 357 00:26:17,675 --> 00:26:20,269 they will be producing growth hormone for Edward. 358 00:26:23,147 --> 00:26:26,674 Scientists figured out how to be able to take bacteria 359 00:26:26,817 --> 00:26:30,913 which are so tiny that you could put twenty on the head of a pin. 360 00:26:32,323 --> 00:26:35,315 They figured out how to put in the gene for a growth hormone, 361 00:26:35,459 --> 00:26:38,895 and thereby change these bacteria in to factories. 362 00:26:40,631 --> 00:26:44,624 And these microscopic factories do this job incredibly well. 363 00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:52,603 Since he's been on growth hormone injections he's grown, 364 00:26:52,743 --> 00:26:53,505 in the last three months, 365 00:26:53,644 --> 00:26:54,941 three and a half centimetres, 366 00:26:55,079 --> 00:26:56,808 and two shoe sizes, 367 00:26:56,947 --> 00:26:58,380 and they do say that there's going to be 368 00:26:58,515 --> 00:27:00,107 a big catch up in the first six months, 369 00:27:00,250 --> 00:27:01,877 and then growth will be normal. 370 00:27:06,924 --> 00:27:09,859 Bacteria engineered to contain human genes 371 00:27:09,994 --> 00:27:11,256 are just the beginning. 372 00:27:13,564 --> 00:27:14,622 In the past few years, 373 00:27:14,765 --> 00:27:18,257 scientists have begun mixing genes from different species 374 00:27:18,402 --> 00:27:22,338 to enhance disease resistance or add extra abilities. 375 00:27:28,312 --> 00:27:31,509 These animals are part mice, part jellyfish. 376 00:27:35,619 --> 00:27:37,314 The gene that makes jellyfish glow 377 00:27:37,454 --> 00:27:40,048 has been inserted in to their DNA, 378 00:27:40,190 --> 00:27:42,158 and they now glow in the dark. 379 00:27:45,295 --> 00:27:47,160 Genes that confer similar unusual 380 00:27:47,297 --> 00:27:49,731 abilities have been put in to monkeys, 381 00:27:49,867 --> 00:27:52,836 and could be put in to us. 382 00:27:54,438 --> 00:27:56,633 Once we understand that DNA is 383 00:27:56,774 --> 00:27:59,402 the genetic material in all living things, 384 00:27:59,543 --> 00:28:02,205 there really is no limit to what genes 385 00:28:02,346 --> 00:28:04,337 you can put in to any living thing. 386 00:28:09,920 --> 00:28:14,289 There is no reason why we couldn't put genes in to human beings 387 00:28:14,425 --> 00:28:15,949 that didn't exist there previously. 388 00:28:22,232 --> 00:28:25,633 Adding genes to us from all over the animal kingdom is fraught 389 00:28:25,769 --> 00:28:29,830 with dangers and practical difficulties, but it could happen. 390 00:28:37,715 --> 00:28:40,183 People are very much afraid of this, and yet, 391 00:28:40,317 --> 00:28:42,114 I'm as convinced as ever that 392 00:28:42,252 --> 00:28:44,413 within a 100 years it's going to happen. 393 00:28:50,661 --> 00:28:53,687 But how many of us will be around in a 100 years time? 394 00:28:54,198 --> 00:28:56,428 The answer may lie in our genes. 395 00:28:59,136 --> 00:29:00,694 Here, at the Bassingbourn base, 396 00:29:00,838 --> 00:29:03,432 the recruits taking part in the genetic experiment 397 00:29:03,574 --> 00:29:05,269 are in to the fifth week of training. 398 00:29:07,611 --> 00:29:10,045 But while some of the recruits are pulling ahead, 399 00:29:10,180 --> 00:29:12,273 Ian is struggling to keep up. 400 00:29:15,886 --> 00:29:18,912 Could the thing that is holding him back be his genes? 401 00:29:23,060 --> 00:29:24,925 I knew I was going to hit the wall sometime, 402 00:29:25,062 --> 00:29:26,552 and it happened about two miles, 403 00:29:26,697 --> 00:29:27,994 two and a half miles round, 404 00:29:28,132 --> 00:29:30,032 and then it just got really hard. 405 00:29:34,004 --> 00:29:35,733 I was in a lot of pain, yeah, 406 00:29:35,873 --> 00:29:41,675 because my chest was hurting and I just I found it hard to breathe. 407 00:29:47,718 --> 00:29:49,208 Gene hunter, Hugh Montgomery, 408 00:29:49,353 --> 00:29:51,446 continues to monitor the recruits. 409 00:29:53,223 --> 00:29:55,691 He believes the thing that may be holding Ian back 410 00:29:55,826 --> 00:29:57,953 lies deep inside his DNA: 411 00:30:02,166 --> 00:30:03,963 On chromosome 17. 412 00:30:04,835 --> 00:30:06,928 This is the so-called ACE gene. 413 00:30:07,538 --> 00:30:09,165 It comes in two forms, 414 00:30:09,306 --> 00:30:13,333 and our athletic ability seems to depend on which form we inherit. 415 00:30:14,945 --> 00:30:16,936 One version seems to be particularly associated 416 00:30:17,080 --> 00:30:20,379 with endurance capability and fatigue resistance of muscle, 417 00:30:20,517 --> 00:30:21,643 and the other version seems to be 418 00:30:21,785 --> 00:30:24,049 particularly associated with strength capacity. 419 00:30:26,757 --> 00:30:30,215 But how does the ACE gene make some recruits good at distance running, 420 00:30:30,360 --> 00:30:32,624 while others excel in strength? 421 00:30:35,732 --> 00:30:37,757 Cur best guess at the moment is that one version 422 00:30:37,901 --> 00:30:40,461 is making the muscle cells grow bigger and thicker, 423 00:30:40,604 --> 00:30:42,196 and hence a great deal stronger. 424 00:30:44,007 --> 00:30:44,871 The other version, however, 425 00:30:45,008 --> 00:30:47,340 is making the cells burn lean, 426 00:30:47,477 --> 00:30:52,141 it's allowing these cells to use less oxygen to get more work out. 427 00:30:53,784 --> 00:30:54,478 And that's what seems to be 428 00:30:54,618 --> 00:30:57,052 predisposing them to be good at endurance. 429 00:30:59,056 --> 00:31:01,991 Although it is good to be strong, in the long run, 430 00:31:02,125 --> 00:31:04,889 it is better to have high levels of endurance. 431 00:31:06,730 --> 00:31:09,028 What Hugh Montgomery is finding is that people 432 00:31:09,166 --> 00:31:12,761 with the endurance form of the gene, tend to live longer. 433 00:31:15,138 --> 00:31:17,197 And there is a reason for this. 434 00:31:17,875 --> 00:31:20,810 Cells that can endure a lack of oxygen when running 435 00:31:21,211 --> 00:31:25,841 can also cope with lack of oxygen in more life threatening situations; 436 00:31:30,254 --> 00:31:31,585 like when the blood supply is 437 00:31:31,722 --> 00:31:35,158 temporarily cut off during a heart attack. 438 00:31:36,360 --> 00:31:38,851 By using these recruits in this way, we can explore 439 00:31:38,996 --> 00:31:41,931 how cells regulate their efficiency, 440 00:31:42,065 --> 00:31:44,590 and then perhaps start treating these sorts of diseases. 441 00:31:49,239 --> 00:31:53,767 But it's not just our physical destiny that may be shaped by our genes. 442 00:31:55,646 --> 00:32:00,481 Genetic research is now being taken in to far more controversial territory. 443 00:32:07,624 --> 00:32:12,027 Could DNA ever be used to predict what goes on in the mind? 444 00:32:16,433 --> 00:32:18,628 Some scientists believe it could. 445 00:32:19,603 --> 00:32:23,505 After all, they argue our personality is formed in our brains, 446 00:32:23,640 --> 00:32:26,609 and our brains are made by our genes. 447 00:32:32,649 --> 00:32:35,550 The search for so-called personality genes remains 448 00:32:35,686 --> 00:32:38,587 one of the most contentious areas of science. 449 00:32:39,056 --> 00:32:42,457 And leading that search is Professor Dean Hammer. 450 00:32:43,193 --> 00:32:45,218 Everybody's interested in human personality. 451 00:32:45,362 --> 00:32:49,093 I mean, that's what makes each person unique is their personality. 452 00:32:49,232 --> 00:32:53,464 But until recently, this was the realm of the soft sciences, 453 00:32:53,603 --> 00:32:56,504 of psychology, hard core molecular biologists, 454 00:32:56,640 --> 00:32:58,403 real scientists like myself, 455 00:32:58,542 --> 00:33:01,909 couldn't study much about personality, it's all changing. 456 00:33:08,585 --> 00:33:11,577 Professor Hammer is convinced that DNA can make a difference 457 00:33:11,722 --> 00:33:15,852 between a life on the sidelines or a life on the edge. 458 00:33:19,229 --> 00:33:22,460 We had new genetic techniques, new brain science techniques 459 00:33:22,599 --> 00:33:25,329 that allows us to look at personality, 460 00:33:25,469 --> 00:33:28,063 the same way that we would look at eye colour. 461 00:33:32,209 --> 00:33:34,006 Putting his reputation on the line, 462 00:33:34,144 --> 00:33:36,271 Hammer is now claiming to have found a gene 463 00:33:36,413 --> 00:33:39,439 that may drive the desire for thrills. 464 00:33:55,065 --> 00:33:59,365 And this is possibly the most extreme thrill seeker on the planet. 465 00:34:03,807 --> 00:34:05,741 Adrian has spent his whole life going 466 00:34:05,876 --> 00:34:08,470 where most of us would fear to follow. 467 00:34:26,196 --> 00:34:28,164 As you step off, if you don't do anything, 468 00:34:28,298 --> 00:34:31,290 you have 14 seconds to live. 469 00:34:35,806 --> 00:34:40,175 I can't remember not wanting to go faster. 470 00:34:40,377 --> 00:34:42,277 I can't remember not wanting to fly, 471 00:34:42,412 --> 00:34:46,439 I can't remember not wanting to rush off and have adventures. 472 00:34:48,185 --> 00:34:52,212 But how could a gene predispose anyone to do this? 473 00:34:55,025 --> 00:34:56,185 Back in Washington, 474 00:34:56,326 --> 00:34:58,851 Dean Hammer's laboratory began the search. 475 00:35:00,564 --> 00:35:02,122 The way that we discover genes, 476 00:35:02,265 --> 00:35:04,665 like the so-called thrill seeking gene, 477 00:35:04,801 --> 00:35:07,031 is simply by taking a bunch of people, 478 00:35:07,170 --> 00:35:11,266 a 1,000 or so, and then taking a bit of their DNA. 479 00:35:13,110 --> 00:35:15,840 The team then compare the genes of the thrill seekers, 480 00:35:15,979 --> 00:35:19,415 like Adrian, with the genes of less adventurous types. 481 00:35:23,487 --> 00:35:25,421 The main difference between the two groups 482 00:35:25,555 --> 00:35:31,892 was a gene hidden away on chromosome 17, called D4DR. 483 00:35:34,598 --> 00:35:36,623 This was a really incredible finding, 484 00:35:36,766 --> 00:35:38,461 because it was the first time 485 00:35:38,602 --> 00:35:40,593 that it was possible to directly link 486 00:35:40,737 --> 00:35:43,205 the molecular nature of the gene 487 00:35:43,340 --> 00:35:46,104 with the person's fundamental personality. 488 00:35:48,712 --> 00:35:54,150 The so-called thrill seeking gene comes in two forms, long and short. 489 00:35:56,386 --> 00:35:59,446 Those with the long version tend to be more adventurous. 490 00:36:01,224 --> 00:36:03,351 The key effect of this particular gene 491 00:36:03,493 --> 00:36:06,155 is on a brain chemical called dopamine. 492 00:36:08,064 --> 00:36:10,794 Dopamine is the brain's pleasure chemical. 493 00:36:11,101 --> 00:36:13,501 It's what makes your brain feel good. 494 00:36:13,637 --> 00:36:16,231 Dopamine is the most pleasurable thing 495 00:36:16,373 --> 00:36:18,864 that your brain will ever experience. 496 00:36:22,145 --> 00:36:25,046 It's literally like a moment set out of time, 497 00:36:26,750 --> 00:36:28,240 because even if you can experience 498 00:36:28,385 --> 00:36:31,582 that sense of elation for one moment in your life, 499 00:36:33,356 --> 00:36:35,256 you'll never ever forget. 500 00:36:38,094 --> 00:36:41,325 Most people's brains are very sensitive to dopamine. 501 00:36:42,132 --> 00:36:45,898 Just walking to the edge of a cliff would be enough to get a buzz. 502 00:36:46,836 --> 00:36:48,133 But people with the long form of 503 00:36:48,271 --> 00:36:50,262 the thrill seeking gene tend to have brains 504 00:36:50,407 --> 00:36:53,001 which are more resistant to dopamine. 505 00:36:53,743 --> 00:36:57,304 They need to take that extra step to get their buzz. 506 00:37:12,429 --> 00:37:15,728 It would be very reassuring to think that it's not my fault, 507 00:37:15,999 --> 00:37:18,263 I'm not as daft as a brush because of me, 508 00:37:18,535 --> 00:37:20,526 but there's something in my genetics, 509 00:37:20,670 --> 00:37:26,404 there's something in my family tree that's made me how I am. 510 00:37:30,680 --> 00:37:34,138 Although genes may shape some aspects of personality, 511 00:37:34,417 --> 00:37:38,547 education and training can over-ride natural inclinations. 512 00:37:39,456 --> 00:37:41,219 Ian and his fellow army recruits are being 513 00:37:41,358 --> 00:37:44,384 trained to do something society normally forbids: 514 00:37:44,995 --> 00:37:46,428 They are learning to kill. 515 00:37:51,501 --> 00:37:54,129 Nothing can ever prepare you for shooting someone. 516 00:37:55,839 --> 00:37:57,534 Apparently, you just see their eyes. 517 00:38:02,412 --> 00:38:05,779 Everything goes blank, and you just like immediately get head wrecked, 518 00:38:05,915 --> 00:38:07,007 because you just think, oh, 519 00:38:07,150 --> 00:38:09,846 I¡¯ve just seen someone die in front of me by my own hand. 520 00:38:11,288 --> 00:38:13,188 The army teaches people to kill. 521 00:38:13,690 --> 00:38:17,023 It does not encourage acts of random violence. 522 00:38:18,962 --> 00:38:20,759 Nonetheless, in Ian's unit, 523 00:38:20,897 --> 00:38:22,421 there are clearly some individuals 524 00:38:22,565 --> 00:38:25,864 who are more aggressive and more impulsive than others. 525 00:38:26,403 --> 00:38:29,839 Although upbringing plays a big part, there is increasing evidence 526 00:38:29,973 --> 00:38:33,773 that impulsive behaviour may also be genetically determined. 527 00:38:34,511 --> 00:38:38,208 A very controversial issue is how much of our behaviour 528 00:38:38,348 --> 00:38:41,010 is determined by our genetic make-up, 529 00:38:41,151 --> 00:38:44,314 and I think people have difficulty thinking about this 530 00:38:44,454 --> 00:38:47,753 because it's a question of freewill. 531 00:38:47,891 --> 00:38:52,123 If we're determined in everything we do by what our genes are, 532 00:38:52,262 --> 00:38:56,790 then what control do we have over what we are, and how we behave. 533 00:38:56,933 --> 00:38:59,868 And this is a very important question and, frankly, 534 00:39:00,003 --> 00:39:02,563 we don't really have the proper answers to it. 535 00:39:07,811 --> 00:39:10,541 But while scientists struggle for answers, 536 00:39:10,780 --> 00:39:13,544 the questions raised by new genetic discoveries 537 00:39:13,683 --> 00:39:16,117 are already beginning to have an impact. 538 00:39:20,757 --> 00:39:21,951 This is Death Row. 539 00:39:26,229 --> 00:39:29,426 Each one of these cells contains a convicted murderer. 540 00:39:33,903 --> 00:39:35,029 But for one prisoner, 541 00:39:35,171 --> 00:39:37,571 an extraordinary claim is being made, 542 00:39:38,007 --> 00:39:39,770 a claim which, if accepted, 543 00:39:39,909 --> 00:39:41,934 would alter the way we look at crime. 544 00:39:44,781 --> 00:39:46,715 That prisoner is Tony Mobley. 545 00:39:47,784 --> 00:39:49,376 He admits to murder, 546 00:39:49,519 --> 00:39:53,182 but his Defence Attorney claims that Mobley couldn't stop himself, 547 00:39:53,323 --> 00:39:58,317 that his impulsive violent crime was the result of his innate biochemistry. 548 00:40:00,630 --> 00:40:05,693 There are individuals who are destined to become criminals, 549 00:40:05,835 --> 00:40:08,269 violent criminals, predators, the serial criminals, 550 00:40:08,405 --> 00:40:10,202 the Ted Bundys, the Daimlers. 551 00:40:15,412 --> 00:40:18,210 In 1991, Defence Attorney, Dan Summer, 552 00:40:18,348 --> 00:40:20,873 began work on the Tony Mobley murder case. 553 00:40:23,720 --> 00:40:26,780 A case that would eventually make American legal history. 554 00:40:29,993 --> 00:40:31,858 Tony was on his way to his father's house 555 00:40:31,995 --> 00:40:34,293 and saw the pizza parlour and decided, 556 00:40:34,431 --> 00:40:37,889 sort of spur of the moment, to rob the place. 557 00:40:40,670 --> 00:40:43,867 Tony went in to the pizza parlour and encountered John Collins, 558 00:40:44,007 --> 00:40:45,565 pulled a gun out, pointed it at John 559 00:40:45,708 --> 00:40:48,233 and demanded the proceeds from the cash register. 560 00:40:51,414 --> 00:40:55,680 At that point, Tony ordered John to turn around and face the wall. 561 00:41:01,024 --> 00:41:05,051 He raised the gun up, and squeezed the trigger. 562 00:41:07,931 --> 00:41:11,924 The bullet struck John in the back of the head and killed him instantly. 563 00:41:13,903 --> 00:41:16,701 Mobley was soon caught and confessed to the crime. 564 00:41:17,574 --> 00:41:19,769 Facing an almost certain death penalty, 565 00:41:19,909 --> 00:41:22,207 Dan Summer began digging in Mobley's past, 566 00:41:22,345 --> 00:41:26,441 to try and uncover reasons for an apparently spontaneous murder. 567 00:41:26,749 --> 00:41:28,341 If you look at Tony's life it's clear 568 00:41:28,485 --> 00:41:30,976 that from a very early age 569 00:41:31,120 --> 00:41:32,985 he was stealing, lying, cheating, 570 00:41:33,122 --> 00:41:34,054 getting kicked out of school, 571 00:41:34,190 --> 00:41:35,953 stealing cars, things of that nature, 572 00:41:37,060 --> 00:41:38,391 and that manifested itself 573 00:41:38,528 --> 00:41:40,519 at such an early age and was so persistent 574 00:41:40,663 --> 00:41:43,564 that there was some forces in his life that were compelling him, 575 00:41:43,700 --> 00:41:46,794 if you will, to engage in that type of behaviour. 576 00:41:49,038 --> 00:41:53,702 Tony Mobley came from a family of risk-taking, wealthy entrepreneurs. 577 00:41:55,545 --> 00:41:58,241 But as Summer began digging in to the family tree, 578 00:41:58,381 --> 00:42:00,747 he unearthed ancestors who seemed to have channelled 579 00:42:00,884 --> 00:42:03,409 their energies in to darker areas, 580 00:42:03,553 --> 00:42:05,919 from rape to robbery and murder. 581 00:42:12,228 --> 00:42:14,025 And as the case went to court, 582 00:42:14,163 --> 00:42:16,028 evidence was mounting from laboratories 583 00:42:16,165 --> 00:42:18,827 around the world linking particular genes 584 00:42:18,968 --> 00:42:21,402 with impulsive aggressive behaviour. 585 00:42:25,642 --> 00:42:26,973 So when the trial began, 586 00:42:27,110 --> 00:42:31,410 Summer and his team of defence lawyers decided to attempt a legal first, 587 00:42:33,950 --> 00:42:35,110 they asked the court to allow 588 00:42:35,251 --> 00:42:38,118 Mobley's genes to be part of his defence. 589 00:42:41,224 --> 00:42:43,988 This country and our law is founded on the notion 590 00:42:44,127 --> 00:42:46,095 that people choose between good and evil. 591 00:42:46,496 --> 00:42:48,828 We were raising the possibility that a lot of 592 00:42:48,965 --> 00:42:52,765 what people do in life isn't result of freewill or free choice, 593 00:42:52,902 --> 00:42:55,234 but actually something that's pre-determined 594 00:42:55,371 --> 00:42:56,702 at the moment of conception. 595 00:42:57,307 --> 00:43:01,209 And that raised a lot of eyebrows. 596 00:43:06,049 --> 00:43:08,449 The judge refused to let Mobley be tested 597 00:43:08,585 --> 00:43:10,849 and threw out the genetic defence. 598 00:43:13,389 --> 00:43:15,721 Mobley is now awaiting execution. 599 00:43:17,994 --> 00:43:18,790 We will never know whether 600 00:43:18,928 --> 00:43:21,658 Mobley's genes influenced his actions, 601 00:43:21,798 --> 00:43:25,996 but the issues raised by these sorts of cases will not go away. 602 00:43:27,203 --> 00:43:29,763 We may well be able to predict whether somebody 603 00:43:29,906 --> 00:43:32,704 will become aggressive or not later in life. 604 00:43:33,576 --> 00:43:36,568 That sort of knowledge is going to take some handling. 605 00:43:36,713 --> 00:43:38,408 We're going to have to think about its effects 606 00:43:38,548 --> 00:43:41,142 on how we deal with such a child and, 607 00:43:41,284 --> 00:43:43,878 indeed, how we cope with such a child 608 00:43:44,020 --> 00:43:47,285 if he misbehaves or even ends up in the courts. 609 00:44:00,036 --> 00:44:02,231 So where will this research lead? 610 00:44:04,440 --> 00:44:05,236 Will it lead to a world 611 00:44:05,375 --> 00:44:07,866 where we lock up children solely on the basis 612 00:44:08,011 --> 00:44:10,809 that they are impulsive and might commit a crime? 613 00:44:16,285 --> 00:44:17,946 Cr because some tests suggest 614 00:44:18,087 --> 00:44:21,056 that they are genetically loaded towards violence? 615 00:44:25,795 --> 00:44:29,231 The idea that we will ever be able to make accurate enough predictions 616 00:44:29,365 --> 00:44:33,233 to justify locking up children is pure science fiction. 617 00:44:34,470 --> 00:44:36,938 But recognising that some children are more at risk 618 00:44:37,073 --> 00:44:42,477 than others might encourage society to help them before it is too late. 619 00:44:43,913 --> 00:44:45,972 It could be that we'll be able to predict 620 00:44:46,115 --> 00:44:48,345 that a child is more likely to be aggressive, 621 00:44:48,484 --> 00:44:49,849 let's say, and, if so, 622 00:44:49,986 --> 00:44:52,181 perhaps we should take particular care 623 00:44:52,321 --> 00:44:55,290 with aspects of their upbringing to try 624 00:44:55,425 --> 00:44:58,223 and prevent that aggression getting out of control. 625 00:44:58,361 --> 00:45:02,195 It just could be that being forewarned of a problem 626 00:45:02,331 --> 00:45:06,563 will allow parents and society to deal with that problem, 627 00:45:06,703 --> 00:45:11,231 perhaps reduce it from becoming a major issue in the future. 628 00:45:16,279 --> 00:45:18,474 But while the ethical debate continues, 629 00:45:18,614 --> 00:45:20,707 the science of prediction moves on. 630 00:45:22,752 --> 00:45:23,878 And after ten weeks, 631 00:45:24,020 --> 00:45:27,319 the genetic study of these recruits is now complete. 632 00:45:29,892 --> 00:45:31,860 The study we've done has been a great success, 633 00:45:31,994 --> 00:45:33,928 perhaps more than we'd anticipated it to be, 634 00:45:34,063 --> 00:45:36,224 and it's shown really that the ACE gene certainly 635 00:45:36,365 --> 00:45:38,265 does have an effect on human performance, 636 00:45:38,401 --> 00:45:41,893 that one version of the gene seems to be strongly associated 637 00:45:42,038 --> 00:45:45,030 with some measures of endurance performance, 638 00:45:45,174 --> 00:45:47,369 and the other one seems to be affecting strength. 639 00:45:50,646 --> 00:45:54,377 Not only is this gene having an effect on sporting performance, 640 00:45:54,517 --> 00:45:56,109 but also on health. 641 00:45:56,252 --> 00:45:58,243 People with those strength versions of the gene 642 00:45:58,387 --> 00:46:00,480 seem to be dying a little bit younger. 643 00:46:05,695 --> 00:46:08,289 None of the recruits will be told their result. 644 00:46:12,168 --> 00:46:15,228 Hugh Montgomery believes the knowledge is too dangerous. 645 00:46:17,106 --> 00:46:18,903 He knows from personal experience 646 00:46:19,041 --> 00:46:21,566 how heavy a burden that knowledge can be. 647 00:46:23,713 --> 00:46:26,807 I personally do know the type of ACE gene that I carry, 648 00:46:26,949 --> 00:46:29,383 because we used to use our own DNA 649 00:46:29,519 --> 00:46:31,749 in the early days for our experiments. 650 00:46:32,922 --> 00:46:35,516 And I regret knowing what my ACE genotype is. 651 00:46:36,759 --> 00:46:38,420 The genes are suggesting that I might die 652 00:46:38,561 --> 00:46:40,461 a little bit younger than I'd otherwise wish to, 653 00:46:40,596 --> 00:46:42,791 that I might suffer increasing severity of diseases 654 00:46:42,932 --> 00:46:45,560 that I'd rather not suffer in a severe form, 655 00:46:45,701 --> 00:46:49,569 and I can't do anything about those findings. 656 00:46:52,742 --> 00:46:54,710 In fact, it makes you feel quite angry when you know, 657 00:46:54,844 --> 00:46:58,143 because you can't overcome that obstacle. 658 00:47:04,420 --> 00:47:07,014 Ian's results, and those of his squad, 659 00:47:07,156 --> 00:47:10,421 will remain undisclosed and locked away in a computer. 660 00:47:11,928 --> 00:47:15,728 Some tests say more about us than we would ever want to know. 661 00:47:17,500 --> 00:47:21,231 When I saw him march past, and he's got his hat on, 662 00:47:21,370 --> 00:47:25,830 his face looked like when he was a young boy. 663 00:47:25,975 --> 00:47:28,136 It was his boy face, and yet he's there, 664 00:47:28,277 --> 00:47:30,177 you know, and he's a grown man now. 665 00:47:30,313 --> 00:47:32,144 And it really brought it home to me, you know, 666 00:47:32,281 --> 00:47:34,215 that it's just gone, just like that. 667 00:47:52,034 --> 00:47:53,797 Imagine a world where you could look in 668 00:47:53,936 --> 00:47:57,804 to your child's eyes and know their genetic destiny. 669 00:48:00,176 --> 00:48:03,839 Imagine a world where every facet of your child's medical history, 670 00:48:04,280 --> 00:48:06,578 its strengths, its vulnerabilities 671 00:48:06,716 --> 00:48:10,049 could be uncovered by tapping in to a computer. 672 00:48:12,788 --> 00:48:14,085 We will not be the same again, 673 00:48:14,223 --> 00:48:17,522 because there's so much information which was hidden away, 674 00:48:17,660 --> 00:48:20,322 which is now open for everybody to see. 675 00:48:24,133 --> 00:48:28,365 Today, we know more about how to build a human than ever before. 676 00:48:31,340 --> 00:48:34,605 And one thing is certain, in the years to come, 677 00:48:34,744 --> 00:48:38,180 we will be able to predict even more about our lives; 678 00:48:41,617 --> 00:48:45,576 because this world of prediction has already begun.