Some dating sites give endless personality tests. Others want to meet you in person and scrutinize everything from your tie to your breath.
Now, some are asking for a swab of spit. Some genetic testing companies are promising to match couples based on DNA testing, saying biological compatibility makes a good match.
ScientificMatch.com is one such company. It says bio-matching will translate into better sex, less cheating, more enduring love and perhaps even healthier children.
GenePartner, a Swiss company that works with matchmakers and dating sites, has tested more than 1,000 people, according to chief scientific officer Tamara Brown. Some were already coupled and took the test out of curiosity.
The GenePartner Test is $99, and will be offered at the Swiss dating site sense2love.com. The idea is that people tend to be attracted to those who have immune system genes that are dissimilar from their own.
Biologists say the HLA genes of the immune system — which are responsible for recognizing and marking foreign cells such as viruses so other parts of the immune system can attack them — also determine body odor "fingerprints." And people tend to be attracted to the natural body odors of those who have different HLA genes from their own.
In one study, Swiss biologist Claus Wedekind found that women who were not taking hormonal contraception preferred the natural scent of men whose immune systems were the most different from theirs.
But don't put too much faith in this, some experts warn. Dr. Rocio Moran, medical director of the General Genetics Clinic at the Cleveland Clinic, called the idea "ridiculous," and said the science of attraction is too complex to look at only a few genes.
"They are just trying to make a buck," she said. "That if it's genetic, it must be real science."
(Source: MSNBC)
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