overview
- New research provides insight into the evolutionary history of the amylase gene, which is key to our ability to eat and digest starchy foods.
- Research has shown that human ancestors began carrying multiple copies of this gene at least 800,000 years ago.
- Other recent research suggests that the advent of agriculture in Europe caused people to acquire more amylase gene copies and adapt to a starch-rich diet.
Long before humans ate dinner rolls or French fries, our ancient ancestors had genes that later helped digest those starchy foods.
The amylase gene produces the key enzyme that breaks down starches into sugars in your saliva and intestines. This is why pasta tastes sweeter when you taste it for a long time. Digesting starch, a type of carbohydrate, is an important part of how we get energy from food.
new research Published in Science on Thursday It has been suggested that the amylase gene has a much longer evolutionary history than scientists previously thought.
The study found evidence that human ancestors began carrying multiple copies of genes as far back as 800,000 years ago.
“This is something that's been happening not only in agriculture but also predates the migration of people from Africa,” says study co-author Omar Gokmen, a professor of biological sciences at the University at Buffalo.
The study also found evidence of multiple copies of amylase in Neanderthals and Denisovans, the ancestors of modern humans. Previously, it was confirmed that this gene only started replicating after the beginning of agriculture, about 12,000 years ago.
Gokmen says it's not clear what purpose the amylase gene served during the time of our ancient ancestors, but it's possible that Neanderthals consumed starch in their primarily carnivorous diets. He said there is.
Amylase may explain part of why starchy foods taste good today, he added. In some studies, High copy number of amylase They tend to eat more starch, but more research is needed to explore these theories.
Peter Sudmant, assistant professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley, who was not involved in the new study, published his findings on the amylase gene last month.
That study, Published in Nature magazinesuggest that with the introduction of agriculture to Europe 12,000 years ago, humans acquired more copies of the amylase gene and thus became better adapted to a starch-rich diet.
“When people started eating more starches, perhaps those with more amylase genes had a better chance of survival,” Sudomant says.
As for the role of the amylase gene, today scientists have not yet determined whether having a large number of the gene is beneficial for people or carries the risk of negative health effects. (Sudmanto says that in his research Presence of more amylase copies is associated with tooth decayThis is because enzymes convert starchy foods into sugar. )
It's also possible that the gene existed for no reason before agriculture developed, he says.
“It could just be floating around and serve no purpose,” he said. “Not all of our genomes have a purpose. … Some just exist.”
Both recent studies relied on relatively new techniques to analyze the genetic material of ancient humans. This tool, called long-read sequencing, allows scientists to read entire genomes, including regions that have previously been difficult to observe in detail. In this case, an unprecedented investigation was conducted into the region containing the amylase gene.
Gokmen's research analyzed the genetic material of 68 ancient humans, including a 45,000-year-old archaeological sample from Siberia and a 34,000-year-old sample from Romania. Meanwhile, Sudomant's research examined hundreds of ancient genomes.
“We were able to take a complete and comprehensive look at dozens of individuals from a variety of ancestral backgrounds,” Gokmen said. “And once we do that, we can basically start reconstructing our evolutionary history.”
Source: www.nbcnews.com
