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Gut Strain

I already had a gut feeling about this.  But apparently the DNA of bacteria we carry around in our guts tells the story of our origins.  We’ve been carrying this stuff around since Africa. Its been evolving. Anthropology.net:  

The out of Africa theory has gotten another line of evidence under its belt, this time from a genetic comparison of the bacteria that we all have in our digestive system. This bacteria is called Helicobacter pylori and depending on which subpopulation of human you are, you have a distinctive strain in your guts. Genetic drift is the mode that creates distinctive strains, because as populations split off from one another genetic mutations become more prevalent. Sampling bacteria, in this case, is more definitive because bacteria have an exponentially faster generation cycle than humans, meaning mutations are even more bold and have a higher resolution throughout evolutionary time.

Each of these strains can tell us where our ancestors came from if we just retrace the ‘path of pebbles’ along the way. That’s exactly what some researchers over at Max Planck’s intellectual powerhouse, and other institutions, have studied. Their findings were just published in Nature, under the title, “An African origin for the intimate association between humans and Helicobacter pylori.“

But I have to admit, I would have never thought to look there. 

Topics: anthronerdism

  Posted by Jules Crittenden at 12:51 am on Monday, February 26, 2007

6 Responses to “Gut Strain”

1. saltydog Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 2:18 am

   Does this mean that we are all African-American?

2. Bill's Bites Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 2:48 am

   Nibbles // Open Post — 2007.02.26

   Just read ‘em. Maybe I’ll find time to do more with ‘em later. (And some things that are too short to excerpt and too good to not mention.) Please feel free to use this post for comments and trackbacks not

3. Old War Dogs Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 2:48 am

   Bill’s Nibbles // Open Post — 2007.02.26

   Some Bill’s Bites posts, some things I excerpted and linked but I’m sending you to the original post. I may rearrange the order of the items within this post as I add new things that I think belong above the

4. RebeccaH Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 4:50 pm

   I always wanted to do a gene analysis to find out where my genes have been, and now you tell me the bacteria in my intestines can do the same thing. But nobody tells me where I can do it for $59.95 or less.

5. El Cid Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 5:51 pm

   RebeccaH

   The Paleobiochemistry Association Concerning Organisms, has a sale on those kits. $59.94. All major credit cards accepted.

   Our motto is;

   What you are. Why you are. Where you are. When you came to be. How you are and Who gives a shit, is important to our cash register.

   One can purchase by
   calling I (800) GET- PACO, today

6. El Cid Says:
   February 26th, 2007 at 6:15 pm

   Of course, there is always the alphie method of asscertaining ones genes.

   http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e66/1AaronMorse/asshead.jpg

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