Proteins News Article
Genome Sequence Unveils The Unusual In Ozzy Osbourne
Ozzy Osbourne, the previous Black Sabbath front man known as “The Prince of Darkness,” has had his genome sequenced and analyzed. Osbourne’s battles with controlled substances are well documented. He said that his genetic map could help explain why he’s still around today. Osborne appeared at TEDMED 2010 in San Diego today to present the findings.
There’s a reason Ozzy’s genome was being sequenced
Ozzy Osbourne’s genome had been sequenced by Mo. bioscience firm Cofactor Genomics and analyzed by Knome, Inc. CNN was able to speak to Jorge Conde of Knome. He said that because Osbourne was diagnosed with a disease comparable to Parkinson’s, he wanted to know more about his ancestry. The explanation that came had been more about his character. In an Oct. 24 guest column for the Sunday Times, Osbourne said “Given the swimming pools of booze I’ve guzzled over the years — not to mention all of the cocaine, morphine, sleeping pills, cough syrup, LSD, Rohypnol … you name it – there’s really no plausible medical reason why I should still be alive. Possibly my DNA could say why.”
Ozzy is a Neanderthal
Osbourne did learn something about his ancestry after sequencing his genome. As outlined by Scientific American, Osbourn’s 10th chromosome has “a little segment” of something there. This implies that a Neanderthal was in Osbourne’s distant ancestry. Years ago, discovering Neanderthal DNA in anyone’s genome — except for Osbourne’s possibly — would are shocking. This year, Neanderthal DNA was being researched by researchers. They discovered that Neanderthal DNA is in 1 to 4 percent of people who are non-Africans. Learning about being a Neanderthal made Osbourne feel “tickled”.
Winning the genetic lottery is Ozzy
Osbourne’s ability to emerge from years of substance abuse alive could possibly be tied to a gene in his DNA sequence that makes a protein radically different than that produced by a lot of people. Osbourne also has an unusual variant near one of the alcohol dehydrogenase genes involved with metabolizing alcohol that might explain why his body has kept up more than would be expected in other people. A Knome scientist summed things up unscientifically, saying “He’s a 61-year-old healthy guy, and that speaks for itself. That suggests he’s done OK within the genetic lottery.”
CNN
news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/29/fridays-intriguing-people-31/?npt=NP1
Scientific American
scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=ozzy-osbourne-genome&page=2
The Sunday Times
thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/
Aging of the Other Genome: A Decisive but Ambitious Solution