title: Prion genotypes in Central America suggest selection for the V129 allele.
abstract: Using the well-characterized, human diversity sample series, we show that the V129 prion allele has a very high frequency in South American populations relative to the East Asian populations from which it arose. We suggest there has been selection at the prion locus, possibly mediated by Kuru-like diseases, which has influenced its allele frequency.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, Porter Neuroscience Building, 35 Convent Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. hardyj@mail.nih.gov
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hardy
authors.forename: Sonja
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Scholz
authors.forename: Whitney
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.forename: Lev
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Goldfarb
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Singleton
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D002489:Central America; D005787:Gene Frequency; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D011328:Prions / Q000235:genetics*; D012641:Selection, Genetic; D013020:South America; D014633:Valine / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D011328:Prions; D014633:Valine