In a recent paper out in PLoS Genetics titled Is Mate Choice in Humans MHC-Dependent? (Chaix et al. 2008) the authors use genetic data to see if the MHC locus is more or less similar between spouses than the rest of the genome. Selection of mates on the basis of MHC locus differences is something that’s been shown in a bunch of animal studies, but it’s still unclear how it works in humans. You may have heard of the studies where women who smelled used men’s undershirts preferred the smell of men with different MHC loci, but some studies have provided contradictory results.
To briefly explain: Genes in the MHC locus are involved in recognizing pathogens. Therefore it is likely advantageous to have more differences between the two alleles at this loci to have a better chance of recognizing more pathogens. Several studies with different animal models have shown a preference for mates that have less similar MHC loci.
What Chaix et al. find is that among European Americans the MHC locus is less similar between spouses than the rest of the genome. Suggesting that we, like mice, prefer to mate with people that have different MHC loci from our own. Notably Chaix et al. don’t find this pattern at all in the Yoruban African samples they examine which makes for some interesting discussion about possible cultural influence or diversity issues. While I don’t know enough about population genetics to confidently say how strong their results are, they sound reasonable to me.
I love the the way people are increasingly using human genomic sequence data to piece apart issues of evolution and demographic history. I also love that this paper is short and well written enough for someone who knows little about population genetics (eg. me) to understand.
Chaix R, Cao C, Donnelly P (2008) Is Mate Choice in Humans MHC-Dependent? PLoS Genet 4(9): e1000184. doi:10.1371/journal.pgen.1000184
What is being called the Montauk Monster is clearly a chimera in need of moisturizer and maybe a beach towel. Most likely a xenographed composite of two animals, like a Cannis rattus. Either way…take that affluent beach community. Something heinous for a change washed up on your gated shore.
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Update
I gladly defer to Darren over at Tetrapod Zoology on this one. Apparently he’s very familiar with the idea of Taphonomy and decomposition. The supposed Montauk beak or bill does not belong to a turtle, eagle, or mythic Griffon; it’s the upper jaw minus dentition of a North American canine. As Darren pointed out:
The tendency for the soft tissues of the snout to be lost early on in decomposition immediately indicates that the ‘beak’ is just a defleshed snout region: we’re actually seeing the naked premaxillary bones. And this is confirmed by new photos which show without doubt that this is the case
Still, the hands and brow region do not suggest a dog. An educated guess, and without knowing the overall size of the creature, would say a raccoon, Procyon lotor. Most dog breads, save for Bull Terriers, have pronounced brow-ridges while the rodent family characteristically maintains slopping, less-pronounced ones.
There are a few of these diagrams out there on the interwebs. It is a representation of life on earth according to relative diversity by species group or taxon. The point being, to show the spindly branches of the mammalian shrub–represented as the teeny pachyderm hiding under the giant shroom grove.
That’s a fine point to make, but could be more effective with a biomass pictorial to see who the real heavyweights are. And then me holding a can of bug spray.
Hat tip to Larry Moran who pointed out a lack of lichen and moss. A few other complaints crop up in the comments section.
In a recent paper out in PLoS Genetics titled Is Mate Choice in Humans MHC-Dependent? (Chaix et al. 2008) the authors use genetic data to see if the MHC locus is more or less similar between spouses than the rest of the genome. Selection of mates on the basis of MHC locus differences is something that’s been shown in a bunch of animal studies, but it’s still unclear how it works in humans. You may have heard of the studies where women who smelled used men’s undershirts preferred the smell of men with different MHC loci, but some studies have provided contradictory results.