I"

,'',

The scientific quest continued 200 yeare after Charlea Darwin'e birth,

Darwin's evolving
theor1
ir
Scientists say the pace of human change is pickingup. Population growth and diet are major factors.
Kanur Kepr,ar
Blue eyeg are tlDlcally assoctated wlth beauty, or Perhaps Frank Slnatra. But to Unlversity of Wtsconsln anthropologlst John Ilawks, theY rpresent an evolutlonary mystery. trbr nearly all of human hJstory, everyone in ,rre world had
between 6,000

$Vo evoluilonary advantage

over

For some rason, that baby's deecendante gaQed a

thelr brown-eyed competl-

years qgo, the flrst blue-eyed baby was bom somewhert near the Bl,ack Sea.

brown eyes, Then,

and
10,000

tors, and today the number of people wlth blue eyes tops half

abllllon.
"What does lt mean?'asked Hawks, who studles the forces that have shaped the human species for the last 6 mllllon Nobody knows. It is one of the quegtlons about evolutlon thet perslsi 200 years after the blrth of Charles Darwin, whose
celebrated years.

blrthday wlll be

worldwide Thursday.

Darwin amassed a lifetime of observatlons on plants and animals to famously conclude

organlsms through a palnstaldngly slow prDcess of tkv random changes and a contlnuous contest for

from slmple

that all llfe on Earth

evolved

survlval ofthe flttest.

Though Darwln published

lSee Etolutio n, Page A12l

A,1,Z^ suNDAY, FEBBUARY

B, zoos

Eor Angel

r,f',r,

\.

Lifestyles continue to shape our DINA

hls masterwork, "Onthe Oilgi:r of Specles,' 150 years ago and

[Evolution, ftom

Page .A1]

opment, lndudtng a.version of

'When there's

flf$*jf*1""jt*:',1"X;':; tlon contlnue apace. Much of tlrat effort focus}s on ttre species Darwin considered the
plrunacle of
process: Ilorzo sapletls.

the evotuuonir! mUtatiOnS.

many ways dlmlnlshed about

ionment so thoroughly that -t- _ .- -, the ,mDeratlve to arolve ln tnefe-S ,mperatlve

wlsdom held that rluuar bewEsvur uqu utqv human rcl4gs had mastered trret envt-

Until recent\y, conventional

And when there are

more PeoPtre, thefe afe mOfe :--

called DRD4 that is sweeping through the European populatton. Some ttdn[ it is a noveltyseeldng vadant, others that it alfects libldo. What they do Iorow ts that having two coples
increases the odds ofhaving at-

dopamine receptor

gene

tentlon-deflclt ffieractivity
disorder.

mofe mUtaflOnS,

ln

ture gave rtse to more-stable

societles.

10,000 years ago,

when agrlcul-

"People thought that with technology and sulturc, ther'd

gest category is devoted to mofe fi$tlnS Infeetious dlseases. selection.' trbr lnstance, the researthers found more thafi a dozen new genetic varlants - MrrronoWolPorr, ngltting malarla tolnvolved ln paleoanthropologCst be spread,ng rapldly among Aftlcans,

purpose ls understood, the big-

Among the genes

whose

horse, lt doesn't matter if you can runfast."

ptlyslcal things to malre any dlfierence," sald Mlford Wolpoff, a paleoanthropologlst at the Untuer$ty of Mlehigan. "If you can rlde a
be no reason for

patterns signallng recent adop tlon of favorable genes.

vn'ong. Aslt happens, ttre pace of evolutlon has been speedlng up not slowlngdown lnthe 40,000 J,ears glnce our arlees'

That turned out to

be

years slnce agriculturc Hggercd the growih of large socletles, the pace has accelerated
100 tlmes

tors fanned out fiom Ethlopta to populatethe globe. And ,n the 5,000 to 10,000

hlstoricat tevets. , 'llVhen there's more people, bhere are more mutatlons," Wolpofr said. "iqnd when there aFe more mutatlons, thercl guantifled ttrris i:r latc 2OUl by
comparing more than 3 mlllion genetlc variants in the DNA of 269 people of Afi:lcan, European, Asian and NaflveAmerican descent. Ttrey created sophlsblmore selection," Hawks and other scientisk

to

- that have been wlde1y adopted tn the last 40,000

years. Rnsearchers uslng more

TIne andpsls turned up about 1,800 genes - 70,6 ofthe

genome

changes make those chunks smaller. By comparlng ttre length of those chunks ln dlffenent people, sclentlsts can estlmate how long ttte beneflclal mutaflon has been spreading thmughthe gene pool.

not lnherlted alone, but ar paesed along ln large DNA chunks. Over tirne, random

fact that new mutatlons arc

Ttreir methods

r@ on the

that ofrered prctectlon asainst

Sdentlsts had prevlously ident!fled several mutations

by people of Afrtcan descent, because the scourge ls most wldespread on that contlnent. But malarla affllcts people throughout the tropics and subtroplcs, and additional mutatlons to combat the dlsease an se ln Thailand and New
Clui:rea, Hawks eaid. One of the newly discoyered

the dlsease. Most were shared

gfegate in blood cells ln the placenta, causing a high rate of

which malarla parasltes con-

mutatlons helps defend against a form of the disease in

mtscarriage.

conservative methods esti: unknown. The scientisis identifled frl genes for the hair
cells lnvolved ln hearing, wlrlch may have been favored by natural selestlon because they help people identify volces or spealr

Dlet is anotherblg force be-

is

mate the number at 300 to 500. The firnction of most genes

As humans made the transiers to farmers, their bodies had to adapt to new Hnds offoods.

hlnd recent human evolutlon.

tion llom being hunter-gather-

lnvolves the gene

The best-known example that regu-

tonal languages such

darin. And
theSr

a.s

Man-

cated computer models to scour the genome for telltale

found

number of
devel-

torlcally, the LCT gene shut

down ln early childhood as ba-

lates a person's abiliff io make an en4fme requjred to dlgest lactose, the sugar in milk. His-

genes lnvolved

in brain

Let@,inws
We're still evolvind

LATIMES.coM/IIIORLD

/i

Humans may like to thtnk of themselves as a fully evolved specles, but natural selectlon is continuing to shape our gene pool. Arryiime there is a mismatch between our DNA and our' environment, favorable mutations that flU the gap are bound to'spread. Here are some examples:

i.'

Lura EtNoo

Lo8

Anglloi Tinci

FB

zEn HARRT8oN octty tmagrs

DISEASE

CT,TN,A,/jE

Mutatlons ln about two dozen

genes have

ppved usefi.rl ln fightingmalaria Most of those

mutations are concentrated ln
people of Afrlcan d escent, since the dlsease is most

wldespread on that contlnent.

Changes ln a gene called LgI allowed adults to contlnue producing an enzyme cruclal for metabollzlng mlk - Slving carrlers ofthe gene I drstlnct dletary advantage. The gene varlant spread rapldry among socletles that herded cattle, sheep and goats.

Ashumans mlgrated out of Africa into northern latitudes, mutations for lighter sldn spread rapldly. Ssientists aren't sure why; the ieadlng it easlerto synthesbe vitarnln D hxregions wittr less sunlight.
theory ts that psle sldn rhE}es

116 AnEEles I)rnes

bles were weaned off breast milk. But sftrcows, sheep and goats were domestlcated, people with a mutatlon that altage that made

starches and sugars.

TIpe proflles

2 dlabetes may be one

had a fitness advantage

Ught

pte wlth

llghter sldn may have

of the eonsequences.

Iowed them to drtnk mllk as adults had a nutrltlonal advanthem to prcpagate thelr genes.

have @mpared the geneuc

Sclentlsts

it

eader for

with those of healthy contmls and found Eome recently spreadlng genes that seem to
gest statdtes. That may explaln wW Natlve Amedcanq,
dlabetes, Hacrks sald. The usefulness of blue eyes

of

because they were morg efflclent at harnesslng the wealer sunmake vltarnfir D. Ongolng studles are searotrlng for evidence

dlabetes patlents

of northem cllmes

to

DNA anatyses have Bhown that the mutatlon crcpped up

protect agahst dlabetes by affectlng ttre body'6 ablllty to di-

that could settle the guestlon. Hurnans are contlnulng to evolve in responie to dlseases,
dtet, cltmate and other factors, tectrnolo8dcal advances have made natural selectlon "a much le8s poteht force on us ln the present than tt waE in the past," sald Noah RDsenberg, a

ln Europe about

8,000 years

way to Indla. Today, lt ls carried by more than 95% of people of Northern Eumpean descent.

ago, and qutclqy sprhd aU

the

But

irho came to farrnlngrclafiveV rece0tv, hane a hlgher rlsk of

2007

study bolsters the

ism prcmpted the

theory that the rlse ofpastoral-

gene's Epread. Uslng new teelmlques

Danln

lectlon

l8n book "Thb Dessent of Man, and Bels far less clear, In hls

human genetlclst at the Uni-

ln nddtion to So<," prcpo8ed that blue

verdwof lvliddgan.
ldds can ermpenEate by drlnklng soy mAKand eathg a vari-

'Ibday,

Iactose-htolerant

to analyze anclent DNA, German and Brtilsh researctrers

ctrecked the genes of etght European farmers who llved 7,000

eyes spread arnong Europeans slmpp because they were sexu-

alrydes,rable,

Some sclentists flnd that

ety of redit\y available nutrlUoue foods. People deficlent in vttamln D can take a supplement. Modem medlcines also maY have reduced the pressur,e.for the gene pool to crEate and spread mutatlons that would protect agalnst new dlseaseP. But wlthout a tirue machlne, all science can do is. rnake an educated guess as to wherc the human genome is

years ago, before the widespread adoption ofa herdingtfesWle. Noneof those early farmers had the mutation for

to

7,800

tlreory plauslble, Othefs Propose that blue eyds are a slde efrect of some other tralt that ls
evolutlonarty usefi.rl
as yet unidentlrled,

lactose tolerance.

though

happened at least flve times. Hawks and colleagues have recently dlscovered

portant that

The adaptatlon was so lm-

it

independent(y over

LCI varlants that arose the last

llv-

Pale sHn is a leadlng contender. Ttle earuest humans A^tlca had dark sldn 0o protect agalnst the damaglng effects of solar radlation. But as PeoPle

rnlgrated. farther

from

the

5,000 years among herders

ing in the Arabian Peninsula

gpnome is stlll adapting to our relatlvely new
and sub-Saharan Afdca.

equator, the melanin requtred' to make their sldn dark became

less necessary.

headjng said Jerry CoYne, an evolutlonary blologlst at the

UniversiWof Chicago:
we're never golngto Istow,"

"There ar some things

ltre human

agricultural diet, based on

Perhaps they stopped makiilg umecessary melanin in orderto conserve energy. Or, peo-

r o-,.oil

karen. kaplan@latimes. com

no,

.,r.lON :n.

$
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IUAII-gIEEEI.{OTIRI4L Iq'"f'Y zo' zo]I

Rapidly Evolving Bedhugs Won't Die

ByRournrLwHotz
netic study of bedbugs, the irritating pests that have enjoYed a
world-wide resurgence in rccent vears, indicates they are quickly 6voMng to withstand the Pesticides used to combat them. The new findings from entomologists at Ohio State University, reported WednesdaY online medical funding to research new
gie-

The first comprehensive

suffipl,of thaF.f'ttc6t
R*targherssre ftndhig genetlc evldence
$6il6gdhugs have evofued tltreb
BIOGXIEMISTRY

control measures.
Repeated applications of the same insecticides act as a form of natural selection for bedbugs'

'commo*Hffihrrrd'

6g1fi ger bl.cfl lF. tnlcal diffises agalnst

Hlgher levqlsdf

baeEillf${ttodes,

tr l

enrymesthat can
ddgoxlfy

Any surviving insects Pass on traits to their offspring and to

succeeding generations.

the.themlcals

E}HIffi,-ON
fhlcker ohitln
layers

more than sped-up evolution," said insect toxicologist John

Cells Eetter able

"Insect resistance is nothing

in

PLoS One, show

that bedbugs
can

thatran

to

levels of enzymes that

mav have boosted their natural deflnses by generating hi8her

bltttk lnsectlcldes

wlthstand toxlc effects

Clark at &e UniversitY of Massachusetts, who led the research team there.

By

analyzing thousands of
Om-

now are 250 times more resis-

cleanse them of Poisons' In New York CitY, bedbugs Pesticide

t
Hfignmlnator revenue gensEtgd" Wselect pqtgilt12009, tn hlltlotts of dolhrs

ACTUALSIZE

RNA sequenees-the biochemical

record of the parasite's genetic

prakash MittapaUi and his ohio State colleagues found that bed-

activity-entomologist

tant to the standard

than bedbugs in Florida due to

charges in a gene @ntrolling the resilience of the nerve cells tar-

bugs exposed

ceted by the insecticide, reiearchers at the UniversitY of Massachusetts. in Amherst re'

cently reported.
The findings add to a crowinc body of evidence from molecular-biology studies that bedbugs
t/lrginla PolytQcb0l( l$itltute; Sourder: ohlo Sthte diilvgftlt$.Unlverslty ofiMsssach0xtb;

showed unusually high levels of activiW among those genes conkolling enzymes able to turn t}te

to

Pesticides

ble

toxic chemicals into water'solucompounds that can be

safely excreted.

Nrtlonilroit

ManagemCtif

Arsotlatlon

have recently evolved three im-

defenses common Pesticides. Bedbucs today appear to have nerve cells better able to withstand the chemical effects, higher lwels of enzymes that detoxify tIe lethal substances, and thicker shells that can block insecticides. '"Ihese bu8is have several back doors open to escaPe," said evolutionary entomologist Klaus Reinhardt at the Universi$ ofTuebingen in Germany, who wasn't involved in the Projects. "SimPle spraying around of some Pesticides may not [be enoughJ now

nroved biochemical

,gri*t

est evidence tlrat efforts to eradicate pests that Plague humankind may rnake some of them stronger. It is a keY reason for the spread ofbedbucs in the Past decade, several researchers who study them said.
Well-adapted to homes, hotels and donnitories, these tiny bloodsucking parasites usuallY hide in

bW entomologist Michael SivaJothy at t}re University ofSheffield in the U.K. "It has evolved very recently."
Sbnce DDT was

"14/hen we mined our tlatabase for these speciflc genes, we found that the bedbug has quite a few of these enzyme systems," Dr. Mittapalli said.

They all belong to a major fanily of enzymes called cyto-

banned about

mattresses, bed f:zmes and uPholstery. Bedbugs feed every five to 10 days, learring Painful welts on the skin and sometimes triggering allergic reactions.

Laboratory tests in tJle

U.S.,

or in the future."

Europe and Africa show today's

In an era of antibiotic-resistant infections and herbicide-re' sistant wdeds, the abilitY of bedbugs to survive once-lethal
doses of insecticides is the new-

bedbugs can survive Pesticide

Ievels a thousand times greater than the lethal dose of a decade or so ago. "There is a Phenomenal level of resistance," said bed-

treated bedbug infestations with pesticides based on a familY of compounds called PYretlroids, uzually deltamethrin or lambdacyhalothrin, synthetic versions of chemicals found in chrysanthemum blossoms. There are few chemical alternatives, because the residential market for insecticides is relatively small, and the cost of development, safety tests and regulatory approval is high, several rcseardhers said. Since the bws rlorft transmit any serious infectious diseases, there also is little

4O years agp, people usuaIIY have

chrome P450 that act as a cataa broad range ofchemical reactions and are implicated in pesticide resistance in other

lyst for

insect species.

In additioo an independent
analysis of bedbugs by researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Insti tute in Blacksburg, Va., suggests other genetic changes may be giving bedbugs sturdier hides

tlrat can keep Pesticides from penetrating their exoskeletons. 'We have dmnged the genetic
make-up of the bedbugs we have

in the United States," said urban

pest-management sPecialist Dini

Miller at Virginia Tech. "That's what I call unnatural selection."