Scientists find brain evolution gene

[cynatnite]

WASHINGTON - Scientists believe they have found a key gene that helped the human brain evolve from our chimp-like ancestors. In just a few million years, one area of the human genome seems to have evolved about 70 times faster than the rest of our genetic code. It appears to have a role in a rapid tripling of the size of the brain's crucial cerebral cortex, according to an article published Thursday in the journal Nature.

Study co-author David Haussler, director of the Center for Biomolecular Science and Engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said his team found strong but still circumstantial evidence that a certain gene, called HAR1F, may provide an important answer to the question: "What makes humans brainier than other primates?" Human brains are triple the size of chimp brains.

Looking at 49 areas that have changed the most between the human and chimpanzee genomes, Haussler zeroed in on an area with "a very dramatic change in a relatively short period of time."

That one gene didn't exist until 300 million years ago and is present only in mammals and birds, not fish or animals without backbones. But then it didn't change much at all. There are only two differences in that one gene between a chimp and a chicken, Haussler said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060816/ap_on_sc/brain_evolution

[3waygeek]

1. They obviously didn't

use * as a test subject :evilgrin:

[Beetwasher]

2. Bush Jokes Aside (And They Are Legion), This Is Fascinating, Important and

Exciting!

[theoldman]

3. I think it is fascinating that humans evolved overall in just a few

thousand years. Tigers, pigs and many other mammals do not look much different than they did 500,000 years ago. Some animals have changed very little over millions of years.

[Posteritatis]

5. Others change over years, or even days

It all depends on whether they need to or not. Sharks haven't changed in over a hundred million years, for instance, because they ain't broke and don't need fixing. HIV changes over the course of a single person's infection with it, several times. We faced different pressures in our own environment back in Kenya, and changed more rapidly as a result.

[greenman3610]

4. Now we can take control

I want telekinetic powers now!

[survivor999]

6. Think of the poor women who

started having to give birth to babies with a huge head... Not good...

[GreenPartyVoter]

7. Husband does not believe in evolution of humans, therefore he will not

believe this news article.