Evolving Ourselves –

Adapting to Our Unnatural World

Augmented/Amplified Humans Colloquium Steve Gullans, PhD Recent News Headlines

City Birds Are Smarter and CRISPR's latest trick is cutting Stronger Than Country Birds HIV out of human cells Blind woman may see thanks to gene therapy and light Caffeine linked to miscarriage Smallest-yet genome reveals and dad's habit matters, too how little we know about Genetically Modified Maggots Can life — synthetic or real Feast On Wounds And Help It Heal

Grandpa's obesity affects the Donald Trump's unsettling health of his grandchildren nonsense on weather and climate

Happy cows make more nutritious milk Gene drive and the future of weaponized insects and the elimination of public Gut microbes cause obesity health threats like Zika Virus Mosquitoes National Academy of Sciences https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Origin_of_Species_1859_title_page.jpg\ Survival of the Fittest

- Herbert Spencer, 1864 Darwinian Evolution Natural Selection

Random Mutation Natural World

Flickr: Valerii Tkachenko, brewbooks, Peter Alder, Darwinek, Cropbot, Myrabella, Lachaume, Tillea, Anthere Unnatural World

Flickr: KR3ColinB ecstaticist, DSK_3539, Andrei Dimofte, Jesster79, Billy Hathorn, fishhawk, Matt H. Wade, Chris Metcalf, Rob Chandler, Riverrat303 Today Humans Run ½ the Show Unnatural Selection

Non-Random Mutation

Unnatural Selection

Unnatural Survival Unnatural Reproduction Avoiding early death Passing on “bad” traits • Modern medicine • Prenatal testing • Food & nutrition • In vitro fertilization • Shelter • Healthy pregnancies • Less violence • Safer deliveries Unnatural Survival

http://krusekronicle.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2008/03/17/le01.gif Unnatural Survival Infant Mortality Rate Maternal Mortality Rate

Credit CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm4838a2.htm Unnatural Reproduction

Assisted Reproductive Technology Third Party Reproduction • Fertility drugs • Sperm donor • Intrauterine Insemination • Egg donor • Embryo transfer • Ovum donor • Intracytoplasmic sperm • Mitochondrial donor injection • Surrogacy • Autologous endometrial coculture • Assisted zona hatching • Embryo splitting Unnatural Reproduction - Fertility

Credit: Max Roser https://ourworldindata.org/fertility/ Very Rapid Urbanization Our biology is designed for this

Flickr: Valerii Tkachenko, brewbooks, Peter Alder, Darwinek, Cropbot, Myrabella, Lachaume, Tillea, Anthere But we live in this Life Around Us Is Changing

"Trillium Poncho cat dog". http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Trillium_Poncho_cat_dog.jpg#mediaviewer/File:Trillium_Poncho_cat_dog.jpg And So Are Humans

• Living Longer • Taller • Smarter • Less Violent • Healthier • Allergies • Autism • Diabetes • Migraines • Infertility • Obesity • Myopia Nature AND Nurture

Genes Environment HoloGenome

Genome EpiGenome (DNA) (On/Off Switches)

Microbiome Virome (Bacteria) (Viruses) Transgenerational Inheritance

Credit: Tanya Hall http://www.pdimages.com/web9.htm Epigenetics and Disease

• Obesity • Autism • Heart Disease • Schizophrenia • Diabetes • Depression • Cancer • Alzheimer’s • Allergies • Autoimmune Diseases • Infections • Angelman’s • Fragile X • Rett Syndrome Microbes & Obesity

Credit: Janice Carr - CDC Microbiome and Disease

• Obesity • Autism • Heart Disease • Depression • Type 2 Diabetes • Alzheimer’s • Infections • Parkinson’s • Growth • Stroke • Lipid Levels • IBD • Prostatitis • Sickle Cell • Cancer • Insomnia • Multiple Sclerosis HoloGenomics

Genomics

Credit: Tommy Williamson Credit: Orion--13 Are We Rapidly Becoming A New Species? Mutating? Non-Random Mutation

Intelligent Design Taking Control of Our Genome

Gene Editing CRISPR

Stem Gene Cells Transfer Cycle of Technology Hype

Peak of Inflated Plateau of Productivity Expectations

Slope of Enlightenment

Trough of Disillusionment

Credit: Roy Amara & Gartner Cycle of IT Technology Hype

Smart Phones Internet of Things Consumer Electronics

3-D Printing Speech Recognition Virtual Reality Cyber- Drones Robotics Humans

Credit: Roy Amara & Gartner

https://scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2013/10/24/moocs-and-the-cycle-of-hype/ Berg, Boyer & Cohen

http://www.whatisbiotechnology.org/people Cycle of BioTechnology Hype

Insulin, HGH, Botox, Gene Editing Fertility Treatment

Gene Therapy

Anti- Cancer Therapy (I/O) Aging Synthetic Biology GMOs, Stem Cells

Credit: Roy Amara & Gartner

https://scholarlykitchen.sspnet.org/2013/10/24/moocs-and-the-cycle-of-hype/ Gene Therapy

Brief History • First human trial in 1989 • 2300 Human trials • Approved in China, 2003 • Glybera approved by EU in 2012 to treat lipoprotein lipase deficiency • $1M for treatment • None FDA approved

Credit: George Church Well Worn Path

Aging & Beauty

Performance

Disease Non-Random Mutation

Modify all my progeny Permanently Modify my children Reversibly

Modify myself Transiently Gene Editing – Gene Drive Eliminating Malaria

Carrier of Malaria Resistance Gene Carrier of Malaria Resistance Gene & CRISPR/Cas9

Adapted from: Patrick Boyle: http://www.methodquarterly.com/2014/11/going-viral/

Metabolix http://www.godieselusa.com/the-feed/?currentPage=3 DIY Genetic Engineering Humans are Directly and Deliberately…

Taking Control of Evolution Ethical Challenges Ahead

• Designer babies • Designer pets and crops • Forever young • Immortality • Cyber-humans • New species • Future humans

Frank K. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mount_McKinley.jpg

What is Evolution? Evolution is a process that results in heritable changes in a population spread over many generations. - Prof. Laurence A. Moran

http://bioinfo.med.utoronto.ca/Evolution_by_Accident/What_Is_Evolution.html Missing Heredity & Mystery Toxins

Credit: Claudette Gallant - publicdomainpictures.net CNS

Hologenome

Immune Endocrine DESTINY You Nurture Infection Toxins Stress Enriched Environment Diet