Genetic Basis of Tail Loss in Human

Genetic Basis of Tail Loss in Human

A recent study by researchers at NYU Grossman School of Medicine has found that a genetic change in our ancient ancestors may explain why humans don’t have tails like monkeys. The study compared the DNA of tail-less apes and humans with tailed monkeys and discovered an insertion of DNA shared by apes and humans, which was not present in monkeys. The research team experimented with a series of mice to examine how the DNA insertion affected their tails. They found a variety of effects on the mice’s tails . During the experiment, some mice were born without tails, which reveals that exploring the process of change could uncover novel functions for elements of the genetic code.

Reference:

1. Xia, B., Zhang, W., Zhao, G. et al. On the genetic basis of tail-loss evolution in humans and apes. Nature 626, 1042–1048 (2024).

2. Campbell, B. Human Evolution: An Introduction to Man’s Adaptations (Routledge, 2017).

3. Tubbs, R. S. et al. Enigmatic human tails: a review of their history, embryology, classification, and clinical manifestations. Clin. Anat. 29, 430–438 (2016).

4. Williams, S. A. & Russo, G. A. Evolution of the hominoid vertebral column: the long and the short of it. Evol. Anthropol. 24, 15–32 (2015).

5. Mallo, M. The vertebrate tail: a gene playground for evolution. Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 77, 1021–1030 (2020).

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Tag: Tail Loss in Human, Genetic, Medicine, DNA, tailbone