There is no single ‘gay gene,’ DNA analysis of nearly half a million people shows

The L.A. Times reports:

A new study that analyzed the DNA of nearly half a million people has found that, while genetic differences play a significant role in sexual behavior, there is no single gene responsible.

The findings, described Thursday in the journal Science, looked at sexual behavior and not sexual identity. Still, the results debunk the idea of a so-called singular “gay gene,” call into question such sexual orientation frameworks as the Kinsey scale, and hint at the complex factors that influence human sexuality, including society and the environment.

“The findings themselves reinforce this idea that diversity of sexual behavior across humanity is really a natural part of our overall diversity as a species,” said Benjamin Neale, a geneticist at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and one of the study’s senior authors. “That’s a really meaningful and important result.”

While estimates of same-sex experiences vary, a 2016 CDC study found that 6.2% of men and 17.4% of women between the ages of 18 and 44 in the U.S. reported at least one same-sex experience in their lifetimes. A smaller portion, 1.3% of women and 1.9% of men, identified as lesbian or gay, and 5.5% of women and 2.0% of men said they were bisexual — underscoring the difference between sexual behavior and sexual orientation identity.

It appears that Hollywood productions don't represent American demographics.