But North and Friedmann pointed out that merely having a favorable gene -- whether for athleticism or any other trait -- doesn't guarantee that gene will express itself in the desired way. A specific combination of many gene variants, in addition to training, environment and attitude, "really make up the complex phenotype that is the elite athlete," North said.
Added Friedmann: "Genes work in an enormously complicated set of interactions, and no gene works by itself. If you have the gene for speed or endurance, all the other genes you carry that [help] or work against that will affect how that gene expresses itself."
More information
The U.S. Department of Energy's Genome Program offers more about gene therapy.
SOURCES: Robert D. Kersey, Ph.D., professor, kinesiology, and director, Athletic Training Education Program, California State University, Fullerton; Kathryn North, M.D., head, Institute for Neuroscience and Muscle Research, Children's Hospital at Westmead, Australia; Ted Friedmann, M.D., director, Center for Molecular Genetics, University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine, and chair, genetics panel, World Anti-Doping Agency, Montreal; July 19, 2012, Nature
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