Thursday, February 09, 2006

 

Earwax Gene Key to Why Cowboys Smelled Worse than Indians


Researchers have found the gene that controls whether you have wet or dry earwax. It turns out that almost all the people Europe and Africa have the wet type, while dry is universal amoung the Han Chinese and Koreans. Both types seem to keep the bugs and dust out of your ears, so you might wonder why it was obviously such a big deal, either in individual survival (selection) or in design by aliens (selection). Lo and behold, the researchers found that earwax type and armpit odor are correlated (none with snot or other disgusting secretions was noted), with the dry earwax types sweating less, so you can connect the dots. In cold climates you do better if you don't sweat, particularly because you are indoors more with other people. Those northern folks also have smaller nostrils, a complimentary trait that may be from one of the other three genes on that particular stretch of DNA.

From earlier postings (January 7) you know that Indians migrated across the Bering Stait with their domestic cats from Siberia, so it should come as no surprise that they all have dry earwax too. Igloo, wigwam, it is all pretty close quarters.

As you probably guessed, the gene is the ATP binding casette C11 gene, a good name to remember in any argument over hygiene.

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