Survival of the sickest chapter 8 summary. Survival of the Sickest Chapter 8: That’s Life: Why You and Your iPod Must Die Summary & Analysis 2022-10-30
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In "Survival of the Sickest," chapter 8, author Sharon Moalem explores the concept of autoimmune diseases and how they may have evolved as a means of survival for certain individuals.
An autoimmune disease is a condition in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells, tissues, and organs. Some examples of autoimmune diseases include multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and type 1 diabetes. These diseases can be debilitating and even life-threatening.
One theory for the evolution of autoimmune diseases is that they may have originally served as a defense mechanism against infections. For example, multiple sclerosis is an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system. It is believed that this disease may have evolved as a way to protect against certain infections that attack the brain and spinal cord. Similarly, type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that attacks the cells that produce insulin in the pancreas. This disease may have evolved as a way to protect against infections that target the pancreas.
Another theory for the evolution of autoimmune diseases is that they may have developed as a way to promote reproductive success. For example, women with rheumatoid arthritis may have a higher fertility rate than those without the disease. This suggests that the autoimmune response may have evolved as a way to protect against harmful infections during pregnancy.
In chapter 8, Moalem also discusses the role of genetics in autoimmune diseases. He explains that certain genetic variations may make individuals more prone to developing autoimmune diseases. However, environmental factors, such as infections and stress, can also play a role in the development of these conditions.
Overall, chapter 8 of "Survival of the Sickest" delves into the complex and often mysterious world of autoimmune diseases. Moalem's discussion of their possible evolutionary origins and the role of genetics and environmental factors provides insight into these conditions and the ways in which they may have developed in humans over time.
Survival Of The Sickest Summary
In 2000, Eleanor was diagnosed with breast cancer, while Elizabeth had the disease. Additionally, he gives some evidence that genes are already capable of adapting to new circumstances because they are able to respond to changes in the environment— or, as Moalem has noted before, of developing antibodies for new pathogens. Here, Moalem illustrates two additional concepts about epigenetics that demonstrate the wide variety of conditions under which epigenetics can come into play. There are only two certainties in this world: birth and death. They also developed tools and cooperation to do so, leading to bigger brains—and because the savannah was hot, they lost their hair. These perspectives of primate evolution help support the argument about how the early primates have evolved to be alike humans. This would mean that favism is selected for because it provides resistance to malaria, which explains why it is predominantly found in tropical climates where mosquitoes are common.
Survival of the Sickest Chapter 1: Ironing It Out Summary & Analysis
When that occurs, the proofreading mechanism is suppressed and adaptations are allowed. There is emerging evidence that the dietary habits of women in the early stages of pregnancy may impact the metabolism of their children. But what about children who grow up thinking differently? If people who have favism, and thus lack the G6PD enzyme, eat fava beans it can result in death due to sudden anemia. More recently, scientists recognized that it would be unlikely for mutations to occur only randomly, because the ability to react to environmental changes and pass on adaptations would be selected for. Thus, not all adaptations necessarily result in diseases: rather, humans have evolved certain built-in tradeoffs that prevent disease.
Additionally, when we are beset by illness, our bodies lock our iron away from biological invaders. These genes are organized into 23 chromosomes, which carry the same type of instructions in each person but with individualized content say, for hair color or eye color. They will be electronically submitted to turnitin. One of the concluding sentences that Dr. But Moalem warns that this may be too much of a good thing: bacteria, cancer cells, and other parasites also need iron, and they can use the iron in our blood and tissue to survive.
Survival of the Sickest Chapter 3: The Cholesterol Also Rises Summary & Analysis
With the mutation, cells deteriorate much more rapidly. Moalem writes that jumping genes have been found in other organisms like bacteria, fleas, and even humans. Without this enzyme, people experience anemia, particularly when they eat fava beans, which have free radicals in them. He also provides a hint in letting readers know that the condition is common in people of Western European descent, as it suggests that it may have once provided this specific population with an advantage. Since the Northern Europeans experience very little sunlight, even though they have light skin it is still difficult for them to produce enough vitamin D. Studies of other plants and animals show how this might have been helpful in the past.
This was the focus of a study of agouti mice, whose genetic expression for coat color and size was completely changed when their mothers were fed vitamins during pregnancy. When she read books on the savannah hypothesis, she became skeptical that only male humans would spur evolutionary adaptation. In the case of grandmothers, when a human female is born, she already has the complete set of eggs she will have for life. BMI measures individuals the weight and height. The savannah hypothesis is still widely accepted by anthropologists. First, this example looks at rats after they have been born, rather than the other examples, all of which examine fetal development.
Iron is not found in key areas where infection can enter our bodies: the eyes, mouth, nose, ears, and genitals. Moalem demonstrates other ways in which aging, and the shorter lifespan that comes with it, can actually confer an evolutionary advantage upon certain species. Moalem explains that this is because as humans settled into cities and towns, they had to figure out how to clean their water. Moalem uses the example of Aran Gordon to display the glaring symptoms of this illness, including an erratic heart beat, arthritis, and diabetes. So, it is believed that hemochromatosis originally came about via a genetic mutation that occurred before the bubonic plague and then was selected for during the bubonic plague, leading to the prevalence of the gene that causes hemochromatosis in the population today. Then, when the child is surrounded by calorie-rich food after being born, they become overweight. This is most likely the result of the varied conditions that different groups of people experienced as they spread out across the world.
Here, Moalem illustrates that the culture of a population in a given geographical location can also have significant effects across generations. This would help explain the high rate of heart disease, especially among African Americans. The current theory is that over time, some virus DNA that has been inserted into the human genome has been beneficial, such as jumping genes, and has increased the rate and ability of human evolution. This is problematic because insulin is responsible for breaking down glucose present in the blood for energy and therefore keeps blood glucose levels from getting too high. Rather than just looking at symptoms and treatments, Moalem wants to uncover the evolutionary roots of diseases in the hopes that a deeper understanding will lead to helping people live longer and healthier lives—much like how Moalem himself has been able to manage his hemochromatosis. In 1952, a microbial researcher named Eugene D.
Moalem writes that little of this story is true: Lamarck promoted inherited acquired traits, but he also believed in natural selection—and Darwin believed in both as well. This effect, Moalem posits, continues to have ramifications for the descendants of those African slaves today. But this response may ultimately have developed because it allowed for greater survival of the species as a whole. This led to an important and novel understanding of how bloodletting was not helpful in every incidence of illness, as had been previously practiced. This theory is supported by the fact that hemochromatosis is particularly common in people of Western European descent—exactly the population that faced the plague.
Survival of the Sickest Chapter 6: Jump Into the Gene Pool Summary & Analysis
Viruses have a vested interest in our survival, because that is how those viruses then continue to be passed on. Even though not all mutations are good, the mere ability to spur those mutations for a chance of adapting more quickly in the face of environmental pressure would be very helpful in enabling our survival. The three of them then had a discussion about communism. One notable observation is that the places where favism is most common coincidentally overlaps with the places where fava beans are harvested and eaten. Thus, even though it seems like a disadvantage, it can actually help the species as a whole survive.
Survival of the Sickest by Sharon Moalem Plot Summary
. But though it allows people to create vitamin D, the cholesterol resulting from ApoE4 puts people at greater risk for heart disease and stroke. But six months after the drug was approved, the drugs were turning off as many genes as they were turning on. Retroviruses are a subset of viruses that are made of RNA which usually acts as a messenger, copying instructions from DNA to create specific proteins. It is about time we manipulated pathogens instead of them manipulating us. After studying their genes, researchers showed how their methylation patterns diverged when they moved apart, leading only Eleanor to develop cancer.
