Fridae

Not necessarily, according to one expert. "We know the color of your skin is largely genetically determined, yet there's still substantial discrimination against African Americans in this country," says Brian S. Mustanski, an assistant professor of Psychology in Psychiatry at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

"Your sex is biologically determined, yet sexism also exists, so the idea that uncovering the gay gene is going to lead to big changes in society has probably been oversold."

Research has found, however, that people who believe that sexual orientation is biologically determined do tend to have more positive views of gay people, Mustanski was quick to point out.

"Furthermore, this research has important scientific value for our understanding of brain development, gender differences and evoluation. These studies are converging on the idea that biology plays an important role in sexual orientation."

The research has received plenty of media attention lately. CBS's legendary 60 Minutes recently looked into the science of sexual orientation, reporting extensively on the research done by Northwestern University suggesting that, on average, gay men do in fact move and talk differently than straight men, suggesting a feminising of the brain in gay men.

But researcher Gerulf Rieger found there are similarities as well: Both gay and straight men are more interested in casual sex, and both tend to be shallow in terms of focusing on looks.

"It suggests that whatever causes a man to be gay doesn't make him feminine in every respect," Rieger told the program. "There must be different parts of the brain that can be feminised independently from each other."

The 60 Minutes report also showcased identical twins Steve and Greg Lofts of New York, who have had the same upbringing and DNA, but one is gay and the other is straight. Myriad other issues�left and right-handedness, altering hormones in lab rats�were also discussed, but the ultimate conclusion is that scientists are increasingly convinces that genes, hormones, or both are playing a role in determining sexual orientation before birth.

New research reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that lesbians' brains react differently to sex hormones than those of heterosexual women, while an earlier study of gay men showed their brain response was different from straight men and similar to heterosexual women�an even stronger difference than has not been found in lesbians.

In his presentation to the GLMA conference in 2005, Mustanski reported on his findings of linkage between specific scientific genetic regions and male homosexuality. He elaborated that does appear to run in families, though it's not clear if male and female homosexuality runs in the same families.

Mustanski suggests that gay people struggling with self-acceptance or therapists working with gay patients use genetics as a launching point for further discussions about acceptance of gay orientation in individuals or their family members.

"A lot of gay and lesbian patients often wonder how they became gay or lesbian, and this work can help all of us understand more about sexual attraction and orientation."

"That may or may not make a parent love a gay child more, but I do think the more we understand these things, the more it helps us appreciate our diversity and why we have these differences. It can be a springboard for going down the road to self acceptance and having healthy conversations."

In the next five, years, Mustanski expects even more studies shed light on genetics and sexuality. "There are a lot of exciting things coming out."