Longevity genes that helped humans survive ancient airborne toxins may be the same genes that make humans resilient to pollution from fossil fuels and cigarette smoke today, according to a study published in the December 2019 issue of The Quarterly Review of Biology. In “The Exposome in Human Evolution: From Dust to Diesel,” Ben Trumble (Arizona State University) and Caleb Finch (University of Southern California) examine the myriad toxins that humans have encountered through our evolutionary history and the immunity-related genes that have countered their harmful effects. “We hypothesize that adaptation to ancient pathogens and airborne toxins may, in some cases, be protecting us today from novel airborne pollutants such as cigarettes and diesel smoke,” Trumble and Finch write. “Further inquiry into these unexplored domains of genetic processes may inform the future of human health and longevity during global warming.”
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The study paper:
