Women with Neandertal gene give birth to more children
One in three women in Europe inherited the receptor for progesterone from Neandertals – a gene variant associated with increased fertility, fewer bleedings during early pregnancy and fewer miscarriages. This is according to a study published in Molecular Biology and Evolution by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany and Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.
[...] Progesterone is a hormone, which plays an important role in the menstrual cycle and in pregnancy. Analyses of biobank data from more than 450,000 participants – among them 244,000 women – show that almost one in three women in Europe have inherited the progesterone receptor from Neandertals. 29 percent carry one copy of the Neandertal receptor and three percent have two copies.
"The proportion of women who inherited this gene is about ten times greater than for most Neandertal gene variants," says Hugo Zeberg. "These findings suggest that the Neandertal variant of the receptor has a favourable effect on fertility."
Journal Reference:
Hugo Zeberg, Janet Kelso, Svante Pääbo. Neandertal Progesterone Receptor [open], Molecular Biology and Evolution (DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msaa119)
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Study: Neanderthal genes may be liability for COVID-19 patients:
Researchers Hugo Zeberg and Svante Paabo determined that the genes belong to a group, or haplotype, which likely came from Neanderthals. The haplotype is found in about 16% of the population in Europe and half the population in South Asia, while in Africa and East Asia it is non-existent.
[...] The genes are one of several risk factors for COVID-19, including age, sex and pre-existing conditions like obesity, diabetes and heart problems.
Zeberg and Paabo, who work at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, noted that the prevalence of the particular Neanderthal gene group is highest in people from Bangladesh, where 63% are estimated to carry a copy of the haplotype.
They cited studies from the U.K. showing that people of Bangladeshi descent have about two times higher risk of dying from COVID-19 than the general population.
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(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @04:58PM (1 child)
Better mustaches?
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @05:24PM
You've visited Glasgow then?
(Score: 3, Touché) by kazzie on Thursday May 28 2020, @05:17PM (5 children)
Well this is a fine article to read while my wife's in labour!
(Score: 2) by PiMuNu on Thursday May 28 2020, @05:30PM (3 children)
Congrats!
(Score: 2) by kazzie on Thursday May 28 2020, @05:47PM (2 children)
Thanks: it's still a (slow) work in progress, but things are steadily moving along.
I've resisted the temptation to ask her if she has any Neandertal DNA.
(Score: 2) by looorg on Thursday May 28 2020, @06:06PM
That is probably for the best, it might not go down great.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @09:54PM
It's going to be slow AND painful if you keep posting to SoylentNews between pushes.
(Score: 4, Funny) by stretch611 on Thursday May 28 2020, @08:40PM
CONGRATS...
Who is the father? =)
Now with 5 covid vaccine shots/boosters altering my DNA :P
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @06:27PM (1 child)
They also like to get dragged around by the hair.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @07:25PM
Now you are just playing with fire.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @07:39PM (1 child)
If the thing that led to the Neanderthal demise was giving the invading homosapiens better genes via interbreeding
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 29 2020, @07:40AM
Selfish Gene. Interesting paradigm in that your genes don't care if you or your "group" survive.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday May 28 2020, @07:52PM (4 children)
That heavy-browed chick across the bar from you giving you the eye WILL get pregnant on your ass!
You have been SCIENTIFICALLY warned!
(Score: 4, Funny) by FatPhil on Friday May 29 2020, @12:36AM (1 child)
Yeah, but you'd better not reject her advances.
Unless you want to experience the neanderthal version of clubbing all night long.
Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people; the smallest discuss themselves
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 29 2020, @01:37AM
Death by clubbing, death by snu-snu... actually better take the snu-snu.
(Score: 2) by The Mighty Buzzard on Friday May 29 2020, @11:47AM (1 child)
Their chicks didn't have heavy brows like the dudes. If you want to know what Neanderthal women looked like, search up some Gal Gadot images. She's pretty close, bone-structure-wise.
My rights don't end where your fear begins.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday May 29 2020, @07:24PM
Funny you should mention that.
I always thought her face was way too large for her head. She has no forehead. She does look like a beautiful version of an archaic humanoid.
(Score: 2) by Deeo Kain on Thursday May 28 2020, @10:00PM
... always turned me on easy!
(Score: 2) by maxwell demon on Friday May 29 2020, @08:16PM
Obviously the dept. line gene wasn't passed on.
The Tao of math: The numbers you can count are not the real numbers.