想在网上相亲？先测DNA

    如今的婚恋交友网站五花八门，总有一款适合你。这些网站通过宗教背景、饮食偏好、外貌身材等各种标准来为你筛选伴侣，有的甚至专门服务于拥有传统观念的乡村居民，比如Farmersonly.com。照这样发展下去，总有一天择偶标准将不再限于共同的兴趣爱好，而开始涉及到个人基因信息。

    SINGLDOUT是一家圣地亚哥的初创企业，他们推出的新交友网站就设计出一种专属的计算方法，通过DNA分析和心理测试来为单身人士配对。

    目前市面上的婚恋网站大多由男性创建，因此，由两位女性创建的SINGLDOUT倒有些物以稀为贵。亚娜•巴亚德担任首席执行官，艾丽•弗兰斯则是销售总监，二人建立婚恋网站的想法来源于自己的择偶经历。

    “在择偶问题上，生物界和数字世界之间存在着差异，SINGLDOUT是第一家弥合这种差异的婚恋网站。”巴亚德说，“这是婚恋交友网站的进步。”

    这家网站主要面向闲暇时间不多的白领人士，让他们能在第一时间就找到自己感兴趣的个人资料。拥有电商背景的巴亚德说：“从DNA的角度来看，我们发现可以通过基因比对结果来确定两个人是否来电。”而且，网上个人资料可以造假，DNA却不能。

    与SINGLDOUT合作的Instant Chemistry是一家位于多伦多的实验服务公司，负责进行DNA测试，并确定会员的基本基因属性。采集DNA的过程非常简单：会员打开已预付邮资的信封，在采集盒中提供唾液样本，然后寄往Instant Chemistry。这只是找到缘分的第一步，要确定约会对象还需要进行大数据分析。

    分析主要针对两项特定的DNA数据。其一是血清素传输基因的长度，它可以决定人的情绪性格。研究表明，血清素传输基因较短的人大多比较感性，而基因较长的人则比较沉稳。凭借其独家运算技术，SINGLDOUT向两位可能有缘的会员发送基因比对结果，并且详细介绍两人如何在实际生活中产生交集。

    另一个数据是关于调节人体免疫功能的白细胞抗原系统。通过对这项指标的分析，可以确定两人在生理上是否互相吸引。SINGLDOUT引用了多项研究结果来支持其“异类相吸”理念。【其中之一是2006年发表于《精神科学》（Psychological Science）的一项研究结果。该项研究发现，男女双方的基因匹配比例越高，女方对男方的性敏感程度就越低，对男性的吸引力也越低，而比例较低的男女反而越高】。

    The world of online dating has something for everyone. Sites are dedicated to picking partners based on religion, dining preferences, pure physical attraction and the good, old-fashioned values of cowboy life (at Farmersonly.com, of course). So it was only a matter of time before a website took the next step beyond shared interests and tapped into genetic profiling.

    SINGLDOUT, a San Diego-based start up, has devised a proprietary algorithm that matches singles based partly on DNA compatibility and partly on the results from a psychological questionnaire.

    In a rare twist for the dating website industry, which is dominated by male company founders, SINGLDOUT was started by CEO Jana Bayad and chief marketing officer Elle France, who hatched the idea based on their own dating experiences.

    “SINGLDOUT is the first online dating website that is going to bridge the gap between the biological and digital worlds of love,” says Bayad. “It is the evolution of online dating.”

    The website is aimed at time-crunched professionals who want to know from the outset that they will click with the person who looks good in a profile. “When we looked at it from a DNA viewpoint, we realize you could actually determine chemistry between two people based on their genes,” says Bayad, who has an online sales background. Plus, DNA doesn’t lie, unlike so many dating profiles.

    SINGLDOUT works with Instant Chemistry, a Toronto-based lab services company that administers the DNA testing and determines the basic genetic profiles of members. For the member, this part is as easy as opening a prepaid envelope, providing a saliva sample in the DNA kit and sending it back to Instant Chemistry. It’s a clinical way to start a budding romance, but no more so than relying on big data to set up a date.

    The research hones in on two specific results. The first is the length of the serotonin transporter gene, which influences emotion. Research has suggested that those who have the shorter gene tend to be more emotionally sensitive while those with the longer gene tend to be more emotionally stable. Based on the results of their proprietary algorithm, SINGLDOUT sends the two potential partners a compatibility percentage with a broad explanation of how they might interact in real life.

    The second DNA test looks to determine physical attraction based on the human leukocyte antigen system, which regulates the immune system. SINGLDOUT points to a few pieces of research to make the argument that opposites attract here. (One piece of evidence is a 2006 study published in Psychological Science that found as the proportion of these genes couples shared increased, women’s sexual responsiveness to their partners decreased and their attraction to men other than their primary partners increased.)