The Psychopath

In the book, “The Psychopath Inside: A Neuroscientist's Personal Journey Into the Dark Side of the Brain," James Fallon describes how shocked he was to not only find out that his brain scans matched other psychopathic killers, but  he has distant relatives who were notorious killers. One of Fallon’s relative--Thomas Cornell--killed his own mother while the other relative--Lizze Bordan-- killed both of her parents. Fallon reports that becoming a psychopath is due to the combination of genes and environmental factors. Fallon tells us that an enzyme called monoamine oxidase MAO is found in many psychopaths. The MAO is related to antisocial behavior, sleeping and eating disorder, hallucinations, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorders. He states that low MAO activity results in aggressive and impulsive behavior (Fallon 72-80). What’s interesting is that an article, “Monoamine Oxidase and Its Effects on the Brain,” from Emory University reveals that MAO is found throughout the central nervous system and it is influenced by sex and stress hormones. Epinephrine, corticosterone, androgen, and estrogen all lower MAO. In other words, stress makes you more aggressive and impulsive. So does that mean that stress leads you to become a psychopath?

Obviously the answer is NO because we would all be psychopaths by now!

Moving onto criminals and their genes, last year the BBC released an article, “Two genes linked with violent crime,” which reported that MAO genes and variants of Cadherin 13 CDH13 gene both were linked to violent behavior. The CDH13 links to impulse control while the MAO gene controls dopamine levels in the brain. It becomes so important for the body to keep these genes in control because drugs, alcohol, and stress can really do great damage if you are a carrier for the gene. I was amazed that if you’re a carrier for both of the genes and you’re drunk, you will become very aggressive and you’re more likely to commit violent acts.

Overall, it’s very important to state that even if you have these psychopath genes, genes are not the only determining factor that will quality you as a psychopath. I find it ironic how James Fallon is the epitome of all these neurological disorders, yet today he is still living an “almost” perfect life. I personally believe that your environment, peers, family, friends, and social circumstances are more likely to determine if you will become a psychopath.  

References

Fallon, James. (2013) The Psychopath Inside. New York, New York: Penguin Group.

Hogenboom, Melissa. "Two Genes Linked with Violent Crime." BBC NEWS. BBC, 28 Oct. 2014. Web. 27 Feb. 2015.

Jones, Caitlin M. "Brain Lightning - The Ultimate Neurological Supplement." Brain Lightning - The Ultimate Neurological Supplement. Rochester Institute of Technology, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2015.