Apparently one silver lining to the plagues that used to sweep Europe is an increased resistance to HIV today.
Devastating epidemics that swept Europe during the Middle Ages seem to have had an unexpected benefit – leaving 10% of today’s Europeans resistant to HIV infection.
But epidemics of which disease? Researchers claimed this week that plague helped boost our immunity to HIV, but rival teams are arguing that the credit should go to smallpox.
What is clear is that something has boosted the prevalence of a mutation that helps protect against the virus. The mutation, which affects a protein called CCR5 on the surface of white blood cells, prevents HIV from entering these cells and damaging the immune system.
Around 10% of today’s Europeans carry the mutation, a significantly higher proportion than in other populations. Why is it so common in Europe? One possibility is that it favours carriers by protecting them from disease. But geneticists know that the mutation, called CCR5-Delta32, appeared some 2,500 years ago – long before HIV reared its head.
I’m sure someone will figure out a way to make this a racial or racist thang (the betting pool is open as to whether that someone will be of European descent or not).
(via BoingBoing)