Demonstration and Implications of Lysozyme and Immunoglobulins in Human Ear Wax

Abstract

HUMAN cerumen (ear wax) occurs in two phenotypic forms, wet and dry, believed to be controlled by a single pair of genes in which the wet allele is dominant over the dry. Mongoloid peoples, including American Indians, characteristically have high frequencies of the dry allele, whereas among Caucasians and Negroes the wet allele predominates^1–3. Although no reason for this genetic dimorphism has been found^4,5, the extreme variations in frequencies of the two alleles among human populations suggest some adaptive value, possibly with respect to disease resistance. In this study, dry and wet cerumen was examined for the presence of lysozyme and immunoglobulins which are known to be present in nasal secretions, tears, saliva, and to play a role in resistance to infection^6–8.