Dissertation Research: Natural Selection at the Alpha-2 Globin Locus in Bornean Orangutans.

自然选择是进化的方向性力量，众所周知，它影响了我们物种的遗传结构。选择的经典例子涉及人类血红蛋白基因的适应，这些基因是用来对抗疟疾寄生虫的。最广为人知的适应性是镰状细胞血红蛋白。除人类外，许多灵长类动物也有类似的疟疾寄生虫。其中一种灵长类动物是猩猩，一种亚洲猿类。本研究的主要假设是，猩猩的α -珠蛋白基因是在自然选择和适应疟疾的过程中产生的。这很重要，因为如果猩猩的α -珠蛋白基因是通过自然选择进化而来的，疟疾可能是灵长类动物中比人类更重要的选择压力。进一步说，疟疾可能是南方古猿（Australopithecus）等早期原始人生活中的一种主要选择力量。体型庞大的捕食者通常被认为是类人猿的选择性媒介，但微观的“捕食者”实际上可能有更大的影响。为了验证这一假设，将从大量猩猩中生成α -2珠蛋白和Dmd两个基因的DNA序列数据。将从这两个基因中计算出不同的遗传多样性指标，并将其相互比较和对比。Dmd基因已被证明不受人类自然选择的影响，因此将成为非选择进化的一个指标。如果这两个基因的多样性显著不同，自然选择就会作用于α -2珠蛋白基因。收集的数据还将用于推断猩猩的种群历史，并为保护工作提供信息。一些估计将是人口年龄、人口规模、迁移率和突变率。然后将这些参数与已发表的现代人和黑猩猩的可比估计进行比较，从而可以直接比较这些灵长类动物的种群历史

Natural selection is the directional force of evolution and is known to have affected the genetic structure of our species. The classic example of selection involves adaptations in the hemoglobin genes of humans created to combat malaria parasites. The most widely known adaptation is the sickle cell hemoglobin. Many primates other than humans harbor similar malaria parasites. One such primate is the orangutan, an Asian ape. The main hypothesis of this study is that the alpha globin genes of orangutans are under natural selection and adaptations to malaria. This is significant because if orangutan alpha globin genes have evolved by natural selection, malaria may be an important selective pressure in primates other than humans. By extension, malaria may have been a major selective force in the lives of early hominids such as Australopithecus. Large-bodied predators are often considered to be selective agents among apes, but microscopic "predators" may in fact have had larger effects.To test this hypothesis, DNA sequence data will be generated for two genes, alpha-2 globin and Dmd, from a large number of orangutans. Different measures of genetic diversity will be calculated from these two genes, which will be compared and contrasted to one another. The Dmd gene has been shown not to be influenced by natural selection in humans and will therefore be an index of non-selective evolution. If the diversity at the two genes is significantly different, natural selection will be inferred to be acting at the alpha-2 globin gene. The data collected will also be used to make inferences about orangutan population history and inform conservation efforts. Some estimations will be population age, population size, migration rates, and mutation rates. These parameters will then be compared to published comparable estimates for modern humans and chimpanzees, enabling direct comparisons among the population histories of these primates