Scientific research is always coming up with some new and interesting information but this research may be of particular interest of others. It appears as if the genes that are inherited to provide a child with intelligence are more likely to come from the mother than the father.
Of course, it has been known for quite some time that intelligence is partially inherited, but it has only been in recent years that the mother was identified as the donor. A number of different studies have pointed to the fact that the mother is responsible for inherited intelligence. This is due to the fact that the intelligence is located in the X chromosomes.
Researchers from the University of Ulm in Germany discovered that there are many genes related to cognitive abilities, and they are primarily located in the X-chromosome. The Medical Research Council Social and Public Health Sciences Unit in Glasgow, Scotland also did another study. More than 12,000 youngsters took part in this study between the ages of 14 and 22. The survey took place in 1994.
A number of different factors were not considered for this study, including educational level, social economic status, race and IQ. According to the data, the IQ of the mother was the best predictor of intelligence in the child.
One thing to keep in mind is that genetics are not the only reason why a child has a certain level of intelligence. The mother may also apply additional roles in the emotional development of the child, because of physical or emotional contact. The University of Minnesota did some research and discovered that by the time a child was 2 years old, they had formed an attachment to their mother and were able to play some complex games. The children who had a strong bond with her mother were naturally curious and confident in their ability to solve problems.
Another study was done at the University of Washington and it showed the importance of the mother child relationship in the development of the brain. The study was done over a 7 year period and they analyzed the way that mothers related with their children. By the time a child was 13 years of age, differences were seen in the hippocampus part of the brain. Children who received emotional support had a stronger hippocampus and therefore, could form memories easier.
In 1984, a study in the University of Cambridge involving rats was completed. They only had the gene of either the mother or the father and they died before they were transferred into the uterus but the genes were able to be studied. The genes for intelligence were only activated when they came from the mother. The father’s genes were mostly responsible for the growth of tissue that became the placenta.
Scientists have therefore come up with a hypothesis that the genes essential for the development of the embryo would also have an impact on the brain functions. This would be true both in animals and in people. More research would have to be done in order to prove the theory because the embryos died so quickly.
The embryos were able to survive when normal embryonic cells were maintained. Genetically modified laboratory mice were created when the genes were manipulated. If there were extra maternal genes, they had larger heads and brains and smaller bodies. When they had additional paternal genes, they had smaller brains and larger bodies.
Researchers have therefore been able to identify cells that only contain paternal or maternal genes in 6 different areas of the brain. The cells associated with cognitive functions, such as eating habits and memories were identified. When they had paternal genes, they tended to find their way to areas of the limbic system, responsible for aggression, food and sex. Maternal genes tended to be found in the cerebral cortex, responsible for advanced cognitive functions.
This research should not be discouraging to fathers. It is also important to consider the physical or mathematical problems that are solved using the limbic system. This is due to the fact that the brain works as a whole, not as independent parts. Intelligence is not only found in rational thinking, inherited from the mother, it is also from emotions and intuition, which may come from the father.
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