2-AIN-506, 2-AIN-252: Seminar in Bioinformatics (2), (4)
Leto 2023
Abstrakt

Julian Padro, Diego N. {De Panis}, Pierre Luisi, Hernan Dopazo, Sergio Szajnman, Esteban Hasson, Ignacio M. Soto. Ortholog genes from cactophilic Drosophila provide insight into human adaptation to hallucinogenic cacti. Sci Rep, 12(1):13180. 2022.

Download preprint: not available

Download from publisher: not available PubMed

Related web page: not available

Bibliography entry: BibTeX

Abstract:

Cultural transformations of lifestyles and dietary practices have been key 
drivers of human evolution. However, while most of the evidence of genomic 
adaptations is related to the hunter-gatherer transition to agricultural 
societies, little is known on the influence of other major cultural 
manifestations. Shamanism is considered the oldest religion that predominated 
throughout most of human prehistory and still prevails in many indigenous 
populations. Several lines of evidence from ethno-archeological studies have 
demonstrated the continuity and importance of psychoactive plants in South 
American cultures. However, despite the well-known importance of secondary 
metabolites in human health, little is known about its role in the evolution of 
ethnic differences. Herein, we identified candidate genes of adaptation to 
hallucinogenic cactus in Native Andean populations with a long history of 
shamanic practices. We used genome-wide expression data from the cactophilic fly 
Drosophila buzzatii exposed to a hallucinogenic columnar cactus, also consumed by 
humans, to identify ortholog genes exhibiting adaptive footprints of alkaloid 
tolerance. Genomic analyses in human populations revealed a suite of ortholog 
genes evolving under recent positive selection in indigenous populations of the 
Central Andes. Our results provide evidence of selection in genetic variants 
related to alkaloids toxicity, xenobiotic metabolism, and neuronal plasticity in 
Aymara and Quechua populations, suggesting a possible process of gene-culture 
coevolution driven by religious practices.