POV: The year is 1910 A.D. in Papua New Guinea. You are a Fore man in a tribe practicing funeral cannibalism. Folks here often get a prion disease called Kuru & die. However, you have PRNP gene variant G127V for resistance to Kuru. Local girls notice you aren't shaking w tremors, paralyzed, and uncontrollably laughing. You are about to experience natural selection 😍
nejm.org/doi/full/10.10… nejm.org/doi/full/10.10…

POV: The year is 855 A.D. You are a Danish Viking warlord with a taste for blonde hair, a polygenic mutation. Blonde women have been appearing more frequently in the last few centuries in Scandinavia. You and your bros caught a few in this raid on a Norwegian peasant village. You are about to conduct artificial selection for blonde hair in Northwest European populations 😍

davidepiffer.com/p/the-origins-… davidepiffer.com/p/the-origins-…

POV: It is 6800 B.C. in a Himalayan valley 3600m above sea level. You are a proto-Sherpa guy w EPAS1 gene mutation for improved blood oxygen transport at high altitudes, introgressed from one of your Denisovan ancestors. You have more energy and can climb further & herd yaks far longer than other dudes, who are dizzy & vomiting from altitude sickness. Local recently migrated Yellow River Farmer girls notice your superior stamina. You are about to experience natural selection

https://x.com/arcticinstincts/status/1990096745506701514

nature.com/articles/natur…

POV: It is 3500 B.C. in NW Europe. You are a Ginger R1b proto-European in ancient Ireland. Unlike other guys, you have the MC1R gene mutation for red hair, freckles, & pale skin. Local girls find your red hair to be "exotic" & notice your legs aren't bowed like other guys. The weather is always cloudy, so most guys have rickets but not you, as your paler skin absorbs more UV to make Vitamin D. You're about to experience natural selection 🥰
academic.oup.com/hmg/article/28… *ackshually the low UV absorption hypothesis for MC1R variant was found to be unlikely. there is selection against this trait in Africa due to high UV, but outside it may just be genetic drift. still sexual selection by gingerchasers is a plausible cause sciencedirect.com/science/articl…

MEGATHREAD for POV genetic selection memes:

Find all my POV posts collected here, updated daily. Eventually every gene will be memed w papers cited!

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*Some genes may have multiple new posts from the favored/against or male/female side of selection. Some selected traits may be inferred or its' genetic cause currently undiscovered or polygenic. 2) ABCC11 rs17822931 A allele - odorless sweat, dry earwax

https://x.com/arcticinstincts/status/1982480632522641620?s=20

POV: It is 1100 A.D. on an Indonesian island. You are a Bajau sea nomad who freedives for seafood. Your spleen is 15% larger than other locals due to a mutation in PDE10A gene. You can store more haemoglobin rich blood, letting you breathhold & dive longer. Local girls notice how much better you are at diving and hunting fish. You are about to experience natural selection
cell.com/cell/fulltext/…