The Kohen Gene :: Biology Essays Research Papers

The Kohen GeneIn a world where Jews have assimilated so much into other cultures, is it possible to guide the lineage of an elite assort of Judaic men alone the itinerary back to a man who lived three-thousand and five-hundred years ago? According to Karl Skorecki, a scientist at the Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, and Michael Hammer, a cistronticist from the University of Arizona at Tuscan, the possibility is alive (1). In Judaic tradition, as writ hug drug in the Hebrew Bible, the Children of Israel were split into three groups. The Kohanim (the singular is simply Kohen) were the priests. The first Kohen was Moses brother, Aaron, and all(a) Kohanim since then are said to be descendants of Aaron. The second group was the Levis, of which Moses himself was a part of, and the third group was compiled of the remaining eleven tribes (of which ten have said to be lost), simply called the Israelites. Since the Kohanim were the priests among the Jewish people, their duties w ere the holiest and more or less important. They were in charge of the sacrifices brought to the Temple, and thus had the most intimate relationship with God, deflexion from the prophets such as Moses. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E., and thus the secession of sacrificial offerings, the role of the priests became ceremonial. However, despite the position that their strict duties do not apply today, all Kohanim, according to Jewish tradition, must still obey many commandments that pertain directly to them. The try for is that one day, a new Temple will be built, and their serve well will be required once again (1). According to Jewish tradition, the role of each individual (Kohen, Levi, or Israelite) is passed down patrilineally from give to son. In traditional and orthodox Judaism, a woman is known as the daughter of a Levi (if her father is a Levi) until she marries, and then she is the wife of a Levi. So, the concept of a kohen gene can only pertain to Jewish men who have not converted into the faith (1). A gene is a sequence of DNA that is used by cells to create protein. It has all of the information needed to make a protein. It knows when to make these protein and where to begin and end. The functions of a cell are then carried out by the proteins.