Cities breed disease protection
Monday September 27th, 2010
People whose distant ancestors lived in cities may have greater protection than others against common infectious diseases, British researchers said yesterday.
A new study suggests that people living in cities gained genetic protection against diseases such as TB and leprosy.
Researchers in London and Oxford tested DNA samples from 17 human populations in countries throughout Europe, Asia and Africa in order to test their theory.
It is thought that people who clustered together in cities in ancient times became vulnerable to infections.
But this also meant people with the disease resistant genes had a much better chance than others of surviving.
The new study, published in the journal Evolution, links a disease resistant gene to those areas which have had cities for thousands of years, such as the Middle East and India.
Researcher Dr Ian Barnes, of Royal Holloway College, London, said: "The method we have employed here makes novel use of historical and archaeological data, as a means to explain the distribution and frequency of a genetic variant, and to identify a source of natural selection."
Fellow researcher Professor Mark Thomas, of University College London, said population density "drove many of the genetic differences we see today between different populations from around the world.
"And now, it seems, it also influenced how infectious diseases spread in the past and how we evolved to resist those diseases."
Tags: Asia | Europe | General Health | UK News
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