{"id":839,"date":"2019-09-25T21:58:24","date_gmt":"2019-09-26T01:58:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/?p=839"},"modified":"2023-08-18T06:19:02","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T10:19:02","slug":"is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/","title":{"rendered":"Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-the-loneliness-epidemic\">The Loneliness Epidemic<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Humans are social creatures. Whether from missing out on that concert it seems like everyone is posting pictures of, moving to a new job in a new city, or following the death of a loved one, we\u2019ve all experienced loneliness at some point. In fact, some say loneliness is on the rise and may soon reach \u201cglobal epidemic\u201d status, ironically fueled by our increased use of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/alicegwalton\/2019\/01\/24\/loneliness-linked-to-negative-social-media-experiences-study-finds\/#10887d697afe\">social media<\/a> and smartphones. These feelings, which occur when there is a difference between our desired and actual levels of social interaction, can lead to increased stress and depression.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to affecting mental health, though, loneliness is known to cause a range of damaging <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cigna.com\/individuals-families\/health-wellness\/chronic-loneliness\">effects to our physical health<\/a>. Chronic loneliness has been linked to elevated blood pressure, increased risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer, and a decreased ability to fight off infections. The harmful effects of chronic loneliness have even been shown to shorten a person\u2019s lifespan by up to 15 years. In comparison, this is the same decrease expected from smoking 15 cigarettes a day!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-your-genes-may-be-making-you-lonely\">Your Genes May be Making You Lonely<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>While many factors determining whether someone feels lonely are environmental and generally relate to particular situations, our genes help determine how likely we are to feel lonely. Studies examining twins and their feelings of loneliness suggest that heritability explains over a third of the variance among whether a person will experience loneliness.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To identify the genetic variants that may be connected to this heritability, previous studies have examined participant\u2019s genomes. They found 15 variants that correlate with a person\u2019s likelihood of feeling lonely, but these only explain a small portion of the genetic component of loneliness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-new-genetic-connections-to-loneliness\">New Genetic Connections to Loneliness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/academic.oup.com\/hmg\/advance-article\/doi\/10.1093\/hmg\/ddz219\/5568316\">new study<\/a> published in Human Molecular Genetics aimed to discover the remaining genetic factors that lead to a person\u2019s predisposition to feeling lonely. To accomplish this, researchers performed a genome-wide association study of over 500,000 participants of European ancestry. By comparing their genomic data to reported loneliness, the study identified 19 genetic variants, including 4 novel variants, that correlate with a person\u2019s odds of feeling lonely.&nbsp;<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Researchers found many of these variants in genes related to the brain- particularly areas that influence social perception and cognition. For example, the most significant variant found in this study is located in the <em>TCF4<\/em> gene, which is known to be crucial for the development of the nervous system. Additionally, <em>TCF4<\/em> has previously been linked to clinical depression.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This new study also examined the genetic connections between loneliness and a multitude of traits and diseases. It found that 39 of the characteristics they examined appeared correlated with a person\u2019s loneliness. Among these, researchers found that loneliness may be associated with depression, neuroticism, tiredness, alcohol dependence, and body fat. This finding underscores that loneliness can lead to a staggering range of mental and physical health effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-another-week-another-nebula-research-library-update\">Another Week, Another Nebula Research Library Update!<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>This study on the genetics of loneliness is just one example from the latest update to the <a href=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/nebula-library-unlocking-genetic-research\/\">Nebula Research Library<\/a>. Each week, we aim to present you with the latest, hot-off-the-press discoveries about your genome to help you unlock the information hiding in your genes. We comb through the latest literature to find studies that give our customers more clues into the traits that make them unique. Aside from loneliness, this week\u2019s updates to the library include studies ranging from BMI to body fat to kidney disease.<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We work diligently to scour the latest scientific publications to give you insights into your genome, as well as digestible information on what those insights may mean for you. Nebula believes that a customer\u2019s experience should not simply end when they get back their sequencing results. Science is ever-evolving, and so is our knowledge of the genome and the importance it plays across nearly everything about us. From loneliness to longevity, our genes help to determine so much of what makes us, us. As such, we believe we have a duty to continue evolving as well, helping us all to make sense of the genetic code contained in each of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To begin your journey of understanding your genes and the information they contain, <a href=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/whole-genome-sequencing\/\">order a whole-genome sequencing kit <\/a>today! <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Loneliness Epidemic Humans are social creatures. Whether from missing out on that concert it seems like everyone is posting pictures of, moving to a new job in a new city, or following the death of a loved one, we\u2019ve &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"ast-button\" href=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA?<\/span> Read More \u00bb<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":841,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_caption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_nocaption":"","_FSMCFIC_featured_image_hide":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2350],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-839","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.13 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA? - Nebula Genomics Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA? - Nebula Genomics Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Loneliness Epidemic Humans are social creatures. Whether from missing out on that concert it seems like everyone is posting pictures of, moving to a new job in a new city, or following the death of a loved one, we\u2019ve &hellip; Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA? Read More \u00bb\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Nebula Genomics Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nebulagenomics\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-09-26T01:58:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-18T10:19:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/image-2.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"450\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Garrett Dunlap, B.S.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@nebulagenomics\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@nebulagenomics\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Garrett Dunlap, B.S.\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Garrett Dunlap, B.S.\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b7bd0a490f115d1d931c33eed922af4e\"},\"headline\":\"Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA?\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-09-26T01:58:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-18T10:19:02+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\"},\"wordCount\":712,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Science\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\",\"name\":\"Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA? - Nebula Genomics Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2019-09-26T01:58:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-18T10:19:02+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/is-loneliness-encoded-in-your-dna\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Is Loneliness Encoded in Your DNA?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Nebula Genomics Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Nebula Genomics\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"\",\"contentUrl\":\"\",\"caption\":\"Nebula Genomics\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nebulagenomics\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/nebulagenomics\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/nebulagenomics\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/nebula-genomics\/\",\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Nebula_Genomics\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b7bd0a490f115d1d931c33eed922af4e\",\"name\":\"Garrett Dunlap, B.S.\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nebula.org\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/32fb6e0dbc7e0bac908b0f23ea6ed5ec?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/32fb6e0dbc7e0bac908b0f23ea6ed5ec?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Garrett Dunlap, B.S.\"},\"description\":\"Garrett Dunlap earned a B.S. in Biology from Case Western Reserve University with a minor in Political Science. 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