Study Questions - Evolutionary Medicine
Readings - chapter 18
1) Provide three examples of local adaptations in humans to their environment.
2) Describe the "hygiene hypothesis" of greater allergic/autoimmune disorders in the developed world.
3) Describe the "thrifty genotype hypothesis" that explains populational differences in type-2 diabetes in American sub-groups.
4) Describe the relationship between pair-bonding (mating type) and the activity of the AVPR1a gne in Priarie and Meadow Voles.
5) What is the "take-home" point of the correlations between AVPR1a flanking variation in humans and the establishment of prsonal relationships?
6) What are the physical ailments that result from bipedality, and why are problems more acute in pregnancy?
7) A quick review of dental websites suggests that 75-80% of people "don't meet criteria to retain" their wisdom teeth. What is the evolutionary explanation for this problem?
8) Describe the balance of selective forces that leads to the prediction that 'old' diseases should be less virulent than 'new' diseases acquired from other species.
9) Ecological dyanmics are important because they can affect the dynamics in reservoir populations. Describe the effect of habitat fragmentation on the spread of Lyme disease, and the effect of decreasing bird diversity on the risk of west nile virus in humans.
10) Aging is a bitch. And one of the strongest correlations between aging and disease is with cancer. Frankly, as we minimize the effects of external sources of death (predation, wars, infection), we live long enough to experience internal sources of mortality (cancer, Alzheimer's, etc.). Describe the pleiotropic antagonism hypothesis as it relates to cancer. What factors that increase fitness when young cause problems later?