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titleThe Science of Love

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caption58 Cleo.com.au AU GUST 2013 Relationships The science of Boy meets girl, boy kisses girl, girl has boy’s DNA tested to see if he is a player. Wait, what? Scientists have discovered some of the genes linked to romance, love and fidelity, and they can now DNA test a couple to predict how long the relationship could last and who will be faithful. Would you do it? By ROSIE SQUIRES LO E How deep iS your love? “At the beginning of a relationship, our oxytocin levels are elevated,” Gillings says. Oxytocin, known as the cuddle hormone, is related to trust, bonding and empathy, and is released during childbirth, orgasm and romance. “Measuring the levels of oxytocin in each partner is actually a good predictor of how long the relationship is going to last,” Gillings reveals. “You could get a blood sample from your new boyfriend or girlfriend and find out how long they are going to hang around.” Brain imaging also reveals levels of oxytocin during early romantic love. The higher the oxytocin levels, the deeper the love and more likely it is to last. So now all you have to figure out P oets may rant on about romantic fate, but now a simple (and oh-so sexy) mouth swab might be able to tell you if that new lover could be The One. Professor Michael Gillings, a biologist from Macquarie University in Sydney, tells CLEO in an exclusive interview there have been advances in several areas that make this seemingly sci-fi process a reality. “Human DNA analysis, brain imaging and understanding of how hormones interact have led us to better understand love,” he explains. “We can rate the sincerity of love by analysing a couple of key genes and neurotransmitters: oxytocin, serotonin and vasopressin.” From next year, a DNA test that determines if you and your lover are likely to last will hit Australia. But is it a test we want to take? cl0813_ FE-ScienceOfLoveP58 - 58 2013-07-02T13:48:43+10:00

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titleThe Science of Love

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captioncl0813_ FE-ScienceOfLoveP59 - 58 2013-07-02T13:48:43+10:00

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captionRelationships Photography Phillip Toledano/ trunkarchive. com/ Snapper Media. Posed for by models in no way associated with this story. that control this hormone, Gillings explains. “The section in front of the gene is a good indicator of fi delity,” he says. The strength of a person’s emotional attachment is linked to the length of that front section of the gene. In a recent study published in Nature Neuroscience, researchers monitored rodents and found the males were monogamous and took care of their females and young. But another related rodent – who had a shorter part of this particular gene than their cousins – preferred to live the player’s life. The males would mate and leave, not staying to care for their family.“The kicker,” says Gillings, “is that you can take the gene from the [ fi rst rodent] and inject it into the [ second rodent’s] brain and, all of a sudden, this promiscuous rodent becomes a stay-at-home dad. It’s a gene that looks to control promiscuity and parental investment – and humans have it.” Gillings says DNA sequencing can actually reveal the length of a person’s fi delity gene. In English? You can fi nd out if he’s likely to cheat before he gets the chance to do it. “When you are going out with a new guy, you could get a sample of his DNA, sequence it and say, ‘I’m not going out with him, he’s got a tiny part of this gene that would be a good prediction he is is how to work, “Hey, baby, let’s go get some brain scans this weekend” into your conversation…So what about early on, when being apart from your new love feels like losing an arm? Well, that’s more physiological than spiritual too. The neurotransmitter serotonin is associated with mood, and Gillings says people with very low levels of serotonin are often diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder. “They are obsessive and emotionally intense,” he says. But, er, that has what to do with a rela