Genes for light skin – 29,000 and 900,000 years old

Genes for Skin Color Rebut Dated Notions of Race, Researchers Say New York Times

Clips

• “The researchers pinpointed eight genetic variants in four narrow regions of the human genome that strongly influence pigmentation — some making skin darker, and others making it lighter.”

• “These genes are shared across the globe, it turns out; one of them, for example, lightens skin in both Europeans and hunter-gatherers in Botswana. The gene variants were present in humanity’s distant ancestors, even before our species evolved in Africa 300,000 years ago”

• “Studying 1,570 people in Ethiopia, Tanzania and Botswana, she and her colleagues discovered a set of genetic variants that account for 29 percent of the variation in skin color.”

• “A variant for light skin — found in both Europeans and the San hunter-gatherers of Botswana — arose roughly 900,000 years ago, for example.”

Research article: Loci associated with skin pigmentation identified in African populations Science Oct 2017 $30

The same issue has: How Africans evolved a palette of skin tones also $30

See also VitaminDWiki

• Overview Dark Skin and Vitamin D

• Skin color may not be entirely related to amount of sunshine

• Bioavailable Vitamin D is the same blacks and whites, but measured vit D is not – Oct 2014

• Blacks have lower vitamin D levels, but OK active vitamin D levels (VDBP) - Feb 2015

• Do blacks have a 5 year life penalty due to low vitamin D

• Diabetes (Type 1) 14X more likely in dark skin children with low levels of vitamin D – May 2015

• Skin color and vitamin D – Jablonski – Spring 2012 has a map of skin color