Scientists find brain evolution gene

[deadparrot]

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

[acmavm]

1. So, they've located the area of the brain which, in Chimpy, is devolving?

Maybe next week they can come out with an explanation on that one.

[demosincebirth]

3. LOL!

[skids]

2. Hrm, so now what, look for people with a 17th mutation...

and plead with them please, please, please get us out of this mess? :-)

[civildisoBDence]

4. Evolution is a hoax perpetrated by secular humanists!

Just like global warming is a hoax perpetrated by leftwing scientists.

This gene was probably planted by God to test our faith.

No matter how cynical I get, I can't keep up

[Lochloosa]

10. Welcome to DU civildisoBDence

:toast:

[xultar]

5. Only works in people with a brain. Those without can't evolve...

aka fundies * BushCo folks.

[sam sarrha]

6. so we can now use stem cells to fix the stupid fundamental Christians?

[xchrom]

7. god i hope so.

[pokercat999]

8. LMAO, now that's funny.....thanks

:rofl:

[DoYouEverWonder]

11. No

they're hopeless.

[Buns_of_Fire]

9. *deep breath*..... Nah... It's too easy... (n/t)

[BadgerKid]

12. Many open questions

Off the top of my head:

1. Are humans "human" before the 7th week of development? (It's been said that the physical appearance of embryo development seems to follow evolution. For example, at early stages, human embryos have tails.)
2. What happens if this gene were added to other organisms? Could sentience be genetically created?
3. What happens if the gene stays active beyond the 19th week? Sooner than the 19th week? (Here we go again ... the debate over genetic basis of intelligence.)
4. Why does (insert favorite supernatural creator(s)) hate non-mammals or non-birds?
5. What, if any, is the variation among individuals? (Answering this will be possible in the not-too-distant future, when the cost is low enough.)

[The2ndWheel]

13. Which is the gene that has made humans attempt

to stop the process of evolution. Poetic.

[krkaufman]

14. We're only a few injections away from a real-life Mr Medulla

[hedgehog]

15. It's an example of the beauty and fragility of life.

Every time someone comes up with a discovery like this, I am once again struck at all the things that had to go exactly right to produce each one of us. It happens every day so we're blase about it, but it's amazing that anyone ever gets born

[ItNerd4life]

16. Gene has only been found in Democrats, still looking

for it in Republicans.

[Kailassa]

17. Ah, so that's how the aliens did it.

Or was it the Nephilim?