It was found that sprinters tend to have one version of the gene, Alpha-Actinin-3 (ACTN3), while long-distance runners tend to have a different version identified as ACTN2.

Researchers said that more elite sprinters possessed not one but two copies of the Alpha-Actinin-3 gene. It creates the code for a protein produced exclusively in “fast-twitch” muscle fibers. They are fueled by glucose and are essential for power and speed. “This suggests the presence of Alpha-Actinin-3 has a beneficial effect on the function of skeletal muscle in generating forceful contractions at high velocity, and provides an evolutionary advantage because of increased sprint performance,” they observed.

Endurance runners, on the other hand, often have two copies of ACTN2, which creates the code for a protein produced exclusively in “slow-twitch” muscle fibers. Long-distance runners typically have slow-twitch muscles. Instead of glucose, slow-twitch muscles are fueled by oxygen and are responsible for sustained exercise.

These athlete gene findings were reported in a paper published in the July 23 issue of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

In contrast, the first discovery of so-called “IQ genes” happened years ago. Research in the late 1990s conducted by Dr. Robert Plomin on an obscure but extremely powerful gene known as the I.G.F.2 receptor gene on the long arm of chromosome 6 identified it as a significant contributer to intelligence. The gene was pinpointed by studying about 50 children whose SAT scores were equivalent to an IQ score of 160 or higher, and by comparing their DNA with children of average IQ. Their talent search program, known as the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth, supplied the test subjects.

Research continues, with Plomin saying he expects to find many more such genes including at least one on each of the 23 pairs of human chromosomes. Knowledge of these genes and what they do could in time help researchers understand the nature of intelligence, as well as learning disabilities and the intellectual decay that occurs in Alzheimer’s disease.

As an editorial aside, perhaps a genetic arms race in sports should be aborted among elite individuals before it starts by banning sports and diverting the vast rivers of money saved to libraries and schools for our soon-to-be-intellectual citizen masses?