Scientists Find A DNA Change That Accounts For White Skin

Washington Post ^ | December 16, 2005 | Rick Weiss

[RWR8189]

Scientists said yesterday that they have discovered a tiny genetic mutation that largely explains the first appearance of white skin in humans tens of thousands of years ago, a finding that helps solve one of biology's most enduring mysteries and illuminates one of humanity's greatest sources of strife.

The work suggests that the skin-whitening mutation occurred by chance in a single individual after the first human exodus from Africa, when all people were brown-skinned. That person's offspring apparently thrived as humans moved northward into what is now Europe, helping to give rise to the lightest of the world's races.

Leaders of the study, at Penn State University, warned against interpreting the finding as a discovery of "the race gene." Race is a vaguely defined biological, social and political concept, they noted, and skin color is only part of what race is -- and is not.

In fact, several scientists said, the new work shows just how small a biological difference is reflected by skin color. The newly found mutation involves a change of just one letter of DNA code out of the 3.1 billion letters in the human genome -- the complete instructions for making a human being.

"It's a major finding in a very sensitive area," said Stephen Oppenheimer, an expert in anthropological genetics at Oxford University, who was not involved in the work. "Almost all the differences used to differentiate populations from around the world really are skin deep."

[AntiGuv]

If the white-skin mutant was sterile then I wouldn't be one of its descendants......

[thoughtomator]

To rule it...

[Forte Runningrock]

What garbage. Perhaps the mutation was turning from white to black, ever think of that Mr. Scientist? I guess blue eyes, blonde hair, bone structure, brain size are all part of this mutation as well.

[longtermmemmory]

So next we are going to have white skin be the "mark of cain"

This is lock step with the UN efforts to define racist as being "white skinned".

What happens if people start to twist it the other way and say the skin mutation lead to civilization. (al that ancient SNL skit with Garrit Morrist and some black history expert.)

[TheCrusader]

"The work suggests that the skin-whitening mutation occurred by chance in a single individual after the first human exodus from Africa, when all people were brown-skinned. That person's offspring apparently thrived as humans moved northward into what is now Europe, helping to give rise to the lightest of the world's races."

Gosh these people make me laugh.

[Forte Runningrock]

Oh, and wool for hair. that's a mystery that will never be solved with the skin gene. Since Allah knows all, let's open up the book of the all knowing, all wize Allah (and his apostle Moe), and see what he say's about it.

Tabari II:11 “Shem, the son of Noah was the father of the Arabs, the Persians, and the Greeks; Ham was the father of the Black Africans; and Japheth was the father of the Turks and of Gog and Magog who were cousins of the Turks. Noah prayed that the prophets and apostles would be descended from Shem and kings would be from Japheth. He prayed that the African’s color would change so that their descendants would be slaves to the Arabs and Turks.”

There you have it. Ham was the genetic link and "adam" if you will, of all black people. Allah is all wise and knowing. Let's double check, after all, several proofs remove all doubt in Islamic scripture.

Tabari II:21 “Ham [Africans] begat all those who are black and curly-haired, while Japheth [Turks] begat all those who are full-faced with small eyes, and Shem [Arabs] begat everyone who is handsome of face with beautiful hair. Noah prayed that the hair of Ham’s descendants would not grow beyond their ears, and that whenever his descendants met Shem’s, the latter would enslave them.”

There you have it, the 'fro" is entrenched forever in Islamic scripture, and ironically it's all Noah's falt that African women are cursed with nappy hair and have to constantly spend large amounts of money to chemically straighten it and iron it. Plus, African's will forever be slaves to Arabs.
Allah is all wise and knowing.

Bukhari:V4B52N137 “The Prophet said, ‘Let the negro slave of Dinar perish. And if he is pierced with a thorn, let him not find anyone to take it out for him.... If he [the black slave] asks for anything it shall not be granted, and if he needs intercession [to get into paradise], his intercession will be denied.’”

This last one is why Blacks shold never convert to Islam. Don't be fooled. You will NEVER go to Muhammad's brothel and get 72 virgins, pearly boys, not even a goat. They are tricking you. Allah is unforgiving.

[rightwinggoth]

"The work suggests that the skin-whitening mutation occurred by chance in a single individual after the first human exodus from Africa, when all people were brown-skinned. That person's offspring apparently thrived as humans moved northward into what is now Europe, helping to give rise to the lightest of the world's races."

I thought white people were actually spawned by an evil geneticist named Jacub as a result of combining recessive genes for several centuries. So says the Honorable Elijah Muhammad (PBUH).

[Cronos]

aw, nutz, you beat me to it!!!

[Cronos]

Though actually that "White men can't jump" thing seems somewhat right if you compare Caucasians (Europeans, Semitics (Arabs, Jews), Persians, Indians, Russians) -- athletic abilities are, on average, of a slightly lower par than Negroids.

[Cronos]

As a blonde, blue-eyed, light-skinned girl, I always wondered what the hell I was selected for for living on this planet.

Come on, don't blondes have more fun?

[Cronos]

well, all people would have been brown-skinned. We can say for certain that people didn't originate in cold areas, rather in Sunny ones

[Cronos]

They hate Christian white people the most.

Then what about their attacks on Condi?

[Cronos]

ping

[Lion Den Dan]

I truly doubt this. From my experience breeding cattle, given one subject with white skin would not result in a white race. The dark skin would dilute the genes and subvert the white with the dark skin remaining dominant.

In other words, one white cow in a herd of black cows will not get you a white herd. One white bull in a black herd, breeding back to his daughters could lighten the herd if the breeding pool were kept small and selective but in an open situation like range cattle (free running humans) The white would disappear.

[CarrotAndStick]

In other words, one white cow in a herd of black cows will not get you a white herd. One white bull in a black herd, breeding back to his daughters could lighten the herd if the breeding pool were kept small and selective but in an open situation like range cattle (free running humans) The white would disappear.

I thought hair, not skin gives the colour and patterns to cows and bulls.

[Lion Den Dan]

I thought hair, not skin gives the colour and patterns to cows and bulls.

True, though somewhere in the back of my mind there seems an exception where the skin is colored. The point I am making is that one genetically mutated individual will not make a radical change in a species.

[Captain Rhino]

That is probably the next area of investigation. At least now they think they have the address of the genetic neighborhood to search for answers in. Explaining the variations in skin color that you note (and the other differences in physiognomy associated with them) will be difficult.

[CarrotAndStick]

You may be right. I am not that learned on genetics. Anyway, this picture is interesting...notice the skin colour of the children:

Seems to contradict the theory of the dominance of the genes giving darker skin colour, as mentioned by someone else here.

http://www.hopeforindia.com/Rajan%20Bio.htm

PS: Search for 'Rajan Beckye'. I found this picture on the internet that way. The husband-wife duo are Evangelicals preaching in India.

[Eclectica]

Assuming that a recessive gene appeared in one person, then the offspring of that person would have the recessive gene even if they did not express it. Some number of their offspring would also have the recessive gene, and sooner or later you will get individuals that express the recessive trait. If natural selection (including sexual selection) then favors those individuals then the gene will eventually predominate in the population.

Never mind all this.

Can adult stem-cell insertions save me all that time I spend trying for a perfect tan?

I need more time to get ahead of the Jones'!

[Vaquero]

"Im white on the right side...he's white on the wrong side"