The evolution of lactase persistence

Lactase persistence has long been recognized as a striking example of human dietary adaptation to changes in food production habits. The observation that the prevalence of lactase persistence is positively correlated with the cultural history of dairying in human populations has led to the formulation of an evolutionary interpretation that became known as the culture-historical hypothesis. This hypothesis emphasizes the influence that culturally derived selection can have on human genes by assuming that the nutritional benefits of milk drinking during adult life are selectively advantageous in groups that rely on dairying to subsist. The recent demonstration of the molecular basis of lactase persistence provided a unique opportunity to test the basic predictions of the culture-historical hypothesis and to evaluate its merit relative to alternative explanations. Here, I present an overview of the evolutionary history of lactase persistence by focusing on the predictions of the culture-historical hypothesis, including the correlation between lactase persistence and pastoralism, the age of lactase persistence mutations and molecular evidences for natural selection. The places of origin and geographic diffusion of lactase persistence mutations are also discussed in the context of the population movements associated with the spread of pastoralism

Biology · Context (archaeology · Evolutionary biology · Lactase · Lactose · Livestock · Natural selection · Pastoralism · Persistence (discontinuity · Population · Demography · Digestive system and related health · Nutrition, Genetics, and Disease · Ecology · Food Science

• Milk not Meat

  M Lombard, Isabelle Parsons•Journal of African Archaeology•2015

  Añadir item

• Convergent adaptation of human lactase persistence in Africa and Europe

  Open Access•Sarah A Tishkoff, Floyd A Reed et al.•Nature Genetics•2007

  Añadir item

• Genetic Signatures of Strong Recent Positive Selection at the Lactase Gene

  Open Access•Todd Bersaglieri, Pardis C Sabeti et al.•The American Journal of Human…•2004

  Añadir item

• Evolution of lactase persistence

  Open Access•Pascale Gerbault, Anke Liebert et al.•Philosophical Transactions of the…•2011

  Añadir item

• The Origins of Lactase Persistence in Europe

  Open Access•Yuval Itan, Adam Powell et al.•PLoS Computational Biology•2009

  Añadir item

• Recent acceleration of human adaptive evolution

  Open Access•John Hawks, Eric T Wang et al.•Proceedings of the National…•2007

  Añadir item

• How culture shaped the human genome

  Open Access•Kevin N Laland, John Odling‐smee et al.•Nature Reviews Genetics•2010

  Añadir item

• Phylogenetic Analysis of the Evolution of Lactose Digestion in Adults

  Clare Holden, R Mace•Human Biology•2009

  Añadir item

• Co-Evolution

  S Strickland, S S Strickland et al.•Man•1994

  Añadir item

• Lactase Deficiency

  Robert D Mccracken•Current Anthropology•1971

  Añadir item