If an identical twin is gay is the other one

Identical twins and sexual identity

Dear Dr. Roach: I scan your recent column regarding identical twins where one of the two was balding while his twin was not. Within my extended family, there are identical twin brothers, who also were almost unachievable for family members to differentiate. If their DNA genes are "identical," now that they are adults, how can one be homosexual, while his twin is married with children? -- Anon.

Answer: Sexual self defies a simple, unpartnered explanation and even categorization. As time goes on, scientists have recognized that not everybody fits into the clear-cut categories of "straight" and "gay." Some people are attracted to both sexes; some to neither; some feel that traditional gender roles don't really fit them. As such, trying to recognize a single cause of sexual identity, genetic or environmental, is not going to be successful. With increasing recognition that people do not fall into binary categories, we can see the limitations of studies that have attempted to answer your scrutinize. Nonetheless, the data is useful to look at.

Studies have shown that in identical twins, if one twin is gay (the term "homosexual" is used in clinical stu if an identical twin is gay is the other one

Identical twins spend their lives being compared. They split duplicate DNA (although it’s expressed in different genes), as well as the same upbringing so they’re generally similar individuals, notwithstanding the effort they lay into being unique. And this is why I find two of my friends so interesting.

Angus and Eric Woodward are identical 25 year-old twins from Melbourne. Eric is gay, while Angus is straight, which created an interesting microcosm of individualism as they hit puberty. Discovering sexuality is a journey for anyone, but maybe more so when you’ve got a twin who is also your opposite. So to detect out how sexuality affected their relationship, and their understanding of themselves, I asked Angus and Eric to share some insights.

VICE: Hey Eric, let’s originate with how you discovered your own sexual orientation.
Eric: In primary institution I can vaguely recall noticing guys and feeling attracted to some of them. Then I keep in mind by year 8 or 9, I started thinking that meant I was probably gay. I was hoping that ideally I wasn’t, but you compassionate of have a selection at that point. You either love yourself and never look back, or something else.

Why Do Some Same Twins Have Alternative Sexual Orientations?

by Justin Lehmiller

A growing amount of research suggests that sexual orientation has a genetic basis. In truth, scientists recently identified two specific genes that appear to differ between queer and straight men [1].

If sexual orientation is indeed genetically determined, it would be tempting to assume that same twins would always have the identical orientation, right? If they have the exact same genes and our genes control our sexuality, this would sound like a beautiful logical conclusion. As it turns out, however, it’s not accurate.

Identical twins sometimes have different orientations. For example, one may be vertical while the other is gay. So why is that?

In cases like this, some might dispute that perhaps both twins are actually gay, but one just hasn’t approach out yet. In other words, maybe there isn’t a true discrepancy. But this idea has been refuted scientifically.

In a study where scientists looked at the sexual arousal patterns of resembling twins with unlike sexualities—specifically, where one was gay and the other was straight—they found that gay twins demonstrated more genital arousal in respons

It has long been transparent that a person’s sexual preference – whether they prefer male or female sexual partners, or both – is influenced by his or her genetic makeup. The most straightforward evidence for this is that sexual preference is more likely to be the same in same twin pairs, whose genetic makeup is identical, than in non-identical twin pairs, who share only around 50% of their genetic makeup.

What has been elusive is knowledge of what specific gene, or genes, are involved. A 1993 study found male sexual preference was influenced by a particular gene on the X chromosome, which the media naturally dubbed the “gay gene”. But a later learn did not replicate this finding, and subsequent follow-ups yielded mixed results.


Read more: Born this way? An evolutionary view of 'gay genes'


The obstacle was that these studies were too small to draw confident conclusions. There are millions of parts of our DNA that commonly differ between people. That means finding the genes associated with sexual preference is like discovery a needle in a haystack.

So an international team of researchers, which I led, set out to tackle this challenge. Our results are published today in Sc

 

By Justin Lehmiller

A growing amount of investigate suggests that sexual orientation has a genetic basis. In fact, scientists recently identified two specific genes that emerge to differ between gay and unbent men [1].

If sexual orientation is indeed genetically determined, it would be tempting to assume that identical twins would always have the same orientation, right? If they hold the exact alike genes and our genes control our sexuality, this would seem like a pretty logical final word. As it turns out, however, it’s not accurate.

Identical twins sometimes have unlike orientations. For example, one may be straight while the other is queer. So why is that?

In cases enjoy this, some might argue that perhaps both twins are actually gay, but one just hasn’t come out yet. In other words, maybe there isn’t a true discrepancy. This idea has been refuted scientifically, though.

In a investigate where scientists looked at the sexual arousal patterns of identical twins with different sexualities—specifically, where one was lgbtq+ and the other was straight—they start that gay twins demonstrated more genital arousal in response to same-sex images, wh