A new study finds that copy number variation in the salivary amylase gene in humans is associated with amylase concentration in saliva and average starch consumption in populations. This provides a striking example of the role of copy number variants (CNVs) in adaptive evolution, and of diet in producing selective pressures.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Relevant articles
Open Access articles citing this article.
-
Variation in NAT2 acetylation phenotypes is associated with differences in food-producing subsistence modes and ecoregions in Africa
BMC Evolutionary Biology Open Access 01 December 2015
-
Haplotype frequencies in a sub-region of chromosome 19q13.3, related to risk and prognosis of cancer, differ dramatically between ethnic groups
BMC Medical Genetics Open Access 03 March 2009
-
The Evolution of Complex Organs
Evolution: Education and Outreach Open Access 10 October 2008
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$209.00 per year
only $17.42 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Perry, G et al. Nat. Genet. 39, 1256–1260 (2007).
Laden, G. & Wrangham, R. J. Hum. Evol. 49, 482–498 (2005).
Thompson, E.E. et al. Am. J. Hum. Genet. 75, 1059–1069 (2004).
Tishkoff, S.A. et al. Nat. Genet. 39, 31–40 (2007).
Helgason, A. et al. Nat. Genet. 39, 218–225 (2007).
McCarroll, S.A. et al. Nat. Genet. 38, 86–92 (2006).
Stranger, B.E. et al. Science 315, 848–853 (2007).
Redon, R. et al. Nature 444, 444–454 (2006).
Gonzalez, E. et al. Science 307, 1434–1440 (2005).
Pennings, P.S. & Hermisson Mol. Biol. Evol. 23, 1076–1084 (2006).
Bersaglieri, T. et al. Am. J. Hum. Genet. 74, 1111–1120 (2004).
Voight, B.F. et al. PLoS Biol. 4, e72 (2006).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Novembre, J., Pritchard, J. & Coop, G. Adaptive drool in the gene pool. Nat Genet 39, 1188–1190 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/ng1007-1188
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ng1007-1188
This article is cited by
-
Variation in NAT2 acetylation phenotypes is associated with differences in food-producing subsistence modes and ecoregions in Africa
BMC Evolutionary Biology (2015)
-
Haplotype frequencies in a sub-region of chromosome 19q13.3, related to risk and prognosis of cancer, differ dramatically between ethnic groups
BMC Medical Genetics (2009)
-
The Evolution of Complex Organs
Evolution: Education and Outreach (2008)