Toughness Gene

February 21, 2003 2:23 PM

Those crazy scientists have discovered a gene that determines how sensitive somebody is to pain. The gene comes in two forms, and you get one from each parent, so a quarter of the people end up tough, half end up in the middle, and the other quarter comprise of wusses. Interesting stuff.
posted by zeoslap (14 comments total)

No pride here -- complete & total pain-wussy. Wanna make something of it? (flees) When I had my appendix removed several months ago, I was pushing my morphine IV button like it was 1979, and I was playing Space Invaders.

Which reminds me of that classic joke: I'm allergic to violence...it makes be break out in blood.
posted by davidmsc at 2:33 PM on February 21, 2003

red-heads too.
posted by thomcatspike at 2:36 PM on February 21, 2003

It seems as if the suggestion is that physical and emotional pain are linked responses. Is there evidence of this? I know that they result in similar harmonal responses, but are physical reactions just assumed to be similar, or proven?
posted by Wulfgar! at 2:48 PM on February 21, 2003

"That guy down at Radio Shack said I was MAhAhAhAD!!! Well who's Mad Now???"
posted by kaibutsu at 4:07 PM on February 21, 2003

Cue references to science-fiction: Genetically engineered soldiers who do not feel pain.
posted by Shane at 4:34 PM on February 21, 2003

Theres genetic disease that renders a person unable to feel any pain at all. Most of the suffers dont live past 20 I think.
posted by Iax at 4:43 PM on February 21, 2003

mind over matter *swallows two extra strength excedrin*
posted by jessicool at 4:58 PM on February 21, 2003

well, that explains Jackass.
posted by Hackworth at 6:02 PM on February 21, 2003

There has to be more factored in when determining pain. For instance, when I had my 4 wisdom teeth surgically removed, I was up and about with no pain that evening after the surgery. But little things like when my system gets, er, let's say backed up, can really have an impact on me.
posted by benjh at 7:08 PM on February 21, 2003

lax: It's called Congenital Pain Insensitivity. There's a number of different forms, but yeah, it's pretty bad because they don't know when they're hurting unless it is visually obvious. I'm actually doing a research project on it for my Bio class (speaking of which, I should probably start working on it... ; )
posted by thebabelfish at 7:42 PM on February 21, 2003

Oh, and scientists currently can't do prenatal testing for CPI because they didn't know what gene was mutated. Maybe this new discovery will help...
posted by thebabelfish at 7:44 PM on February 21, 2003

a gene that determines how sensitive somebody is to pain.

Determines, or correlates with?
posted by namespan at 10:11 PM on February 21, 2003

That wacky ol' correlation, running around implying causation! What wacky hijinx will he hang around next week?
posted by arto at 12:16 AM on February 22, 2003

Molecular secret of Special Forces toughness
posted by homunculus at 6:01 PM on February 22, 2003