Gene-ious!

Geneticists, and scientists in general, may not exactly have a reputation as having a sense of humor. But, I argue, many of them truly do. I have evidence to prove it, which I will present in this post. I stumbled across this evidence when searching for an appropriate name for my iPad. I simply Googled "funny gene names," and came up with a list of sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant, sometimes culturally referenced, names for genes of various organisms (especially my dear Drosophila melanogaster). Here are some of my favorites, taken from a couple of Web sites that I found: jpetrie.myweb.uga.edu/genes.html, www.curioustaxonomy.net/gene/fly.html, and tinman.nikunnakki.info/browser. I hope they bring a smile to your face, as they did to mine.

These are all from Drosophila melanogaster:

Gene name	History behind name
18wheeler	This gene is expressed in 18 stripes in developing larvae.
agnostic	Agnostic flies fail to learn odors in certain temperatures. Agnostic people also have problems making up their minds.
amontillado	Mutant larvae do not hatch. In Edgar Allen Poe's short story "The Cask of Amontillado," a man who is still alive is walled in.
brokenheart	A mutation in this gene causes a defect in heart development.
cheap date	These mutants are very sensitive to alcohol.
cleopatra	In these mutants, an interaction with the asp gene is lethal. Queen Cleopatra supposedly committed suicide with a poisonous asp.
clown	Mutants' eyes are red and white.
coitus interruptus	Mutant males literally engage in withdrawal during copulation (it lasts about 60% of the normal 20 minutes).
dachshund	Flies have crippled legs, resembling this dog species.
dreadlocks	The connections between nerve cells of these flies are not correct, and the result resembles the hairstyle of the same name.
drop dead	These mutants' brains deteriorate rapidly; they begin to walk in an uncoordinated way and then die.
dunce	These flies have impaired learning.
glass-bottom boat	These flies' larvae are transparent.
grim, reaper	These two genes together mediate programmed cell death (apoptosis) in the fruit fly.
groucho	Mutants have a greater-than-normal number of bristles (like Groucho Marx).
icebox	Female icebox mutants do not care about courting males.
ken and barbie	Both male and female mutants lack external genitalia (like Ken and Barbie).
limo	This gene is involved in protein transport.
lot	A Biblical reference: mutants like salt more than usual.
lush	Mutation causes increased desire for alcohol.
out cold	Mutants lose coordination when the temperature falls, and eventually become paralyzed.
sarah	Mutants are practically sterile (another Biblical reference, to Sarah, Abraham's wife).
stuck	Mutant flies get stuck in females.
swiss cheese	Mutants have holes in their brains that resemble swiss cheese.
van gogh	Swirling wing hair patterns resemble van Gogh's paintings.
yuri	Mutants have difficulty with gravity. The gene was found on the 40th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's historic space flight.

Thanks to the tinman Web site I referenced above for these gene names and explanations; visit the site for more. Fun stuff!