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Milk

Content type
User Generated
Subject
Biology
School
Hillsborough Community College
Type
Homework
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A.
B. What is lactase persistence? What region of the world has the most lactase
persistence?
- Lactase persistence is the ability of humans (adults) to digest the sugar lactose
found in dairy products.
Lactase persistence is frequently found in people of Northern European
ancestry as well as some African, Middle Eastern and Southern Asian groups.
C. What is the genetic reason for the lactase persistence? What is the DNA
nucleotide that changed? What did it change to?
- Lactase persistence (gene: 13,910*T) became advantageous to humans after
the onset of agriculture and domestication of animal species that provide a
steady milk source.
Lactose intolerance is a recessive trait. Lactase persistence is a dominant
characteristic because half levels of lactase activity are enough to manifest the
trait. Individuals who have a cytosine (C) residue on both alleles close to the
lactase gene do not produce lactase in adulthood and are lactose intolerant.
A single point mutation in the DNA near to the lactase gene changes the
cytosine (C) nucleotide to a thymine (T). People who have the thymine
(T) nucleotide are lactose tolerant and can digest dairy when they are adults.
D. Is this the same lactase mutation found in Eastern Africans and Europeans?
Were milk fats found in ancient clay pots of East Africans?
- Those descendants from populations that have practiced cattle domestication
historically, like Eastern Africans and Europeans, still have the ability to
digest milk into adulthood. Prehistoric people in Saharan Africa had milk
farming operations 7,000 years ago which was seen in their pottery when
archaeologists performed analysis on samples drawn from excavated clay
pots, and identified organic material that was discovered to be from dairy fat.
E. How did the cultural change of dairying drive the spread of lactase mutation?
- Lactase persistence only became advantageous after the invention of
agriculture, when milk from domesticated animals became available for
adults to drink. It is strongly correlated with the history of dairy industry of
the population. The culture of dairying creates a powerful selective edge for
those who can consume dairy as adults, because only those people can benefit
from milk, this is an example of a gene-culture co-evolution.

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A. B. What is lactase persistence? What region of the world has the most lactase persistence? - Lactase persistence is the ability of humans (adults) to digest the sugar lactose found in dairy products. Lactase persistence is frequently found in people of Northern European ancestry as well as some African, Middle Eastern and Southern Asian groups. C. What is the genetic reason for the lactase persistence? What is the DNA nucleotide that changed? What did it change to? - Lactase persistence (gene: 13,910*T) became advantageous to humans after the onset of agriculture and domestication of animal ...
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