Tuesday, November 22, 2016

ADAM9 Gene Helped Monkeys Survive

Snub-nosed monkeys are a small part of the monkey species that are found living in low oxygen environments. The monkeys are found in areas that are thousands of feet about sea level. Scientists found that the ADAM9 gene actually has helped these monkeys live in an area that does not have much oxygen. The ADAM9 gene has also been found in different animals such as chickens, but they have their own versions of the gene. Scientists also found that because of such small populations of this monkey, they are less diverse then other monkeys in the world.


I found this article interesting because this gene is not found in all monkeys. Only specific animals have this gene, and it is even cooler because it helps them to survive. This gene was also found in an extinct species of human relatives. It makes me wonder if they have done any studies on people who live in Colorado compared to New Orleans. It would seem that people who are used to living in higher altitudes quite possibly could have this gene.

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