History of medicine Flashcards
Why do we study history of medicine?
- Heuristic models (process of discovery)
- Science “in the making”
- illustrates changes in medical epistemology
- Help the doctor to grasp the change of values
Explain the mismatch between today’s diet and our teeth
Our dental disorders stem from a shift in the oral environment caused by the introduction of softer, more sugary foods than the ones our ancestors typically ate
When did agriculture begin?
10000BC
How old are Homo sapiens?
originated 200,000 and 300,000 years ago
Why do races not exist?
There are more genetic differences within the same human group than between different human groups
Where is genetic variation derived from?
- Environmental selective pressure
- Founder effect
- Mutations
What is the founder effect?
It is when a small group leaves from a population and carries with it a new gene frequency
What prevents allele frequency to change?
Random mating
What causes allele frequency to change?
genetic drift and natural selection
What is genetic drift associated with?
loss of genetic variation
What is the bottleneck effect?
Random reduction in population which changes the gene pool;
What are factors that have impacted the biology of Homo sampiens?
- Climate
- Availability of food
- Infectious diseases
- Bottle necking [founder effect]
Describe the bottlenecking effect of the Jewish Ashkenazi populations
The BRCA1 gene frequency is about 8 times higher in the Ashkenazi or Tay-Sachs disease. The heterozygous advantage gene can lead to an increased resistance to tuberculosis. The Ashkenazi population was forced to live in crowded urban ghettos with poor sanitation ideal for TB. It is suggested that the persistence of Tay-Sachs can be explained by the winnowing effect
What is the winnowing effect?
Describes the process by which certain traits or genetic variations become more or less common in a population due to differential survival and reproduction
