The team analyzed more than 500 ancient DNA samples extracted mainly from the remains of Londoners who died before theSome samples were drawn from people buried in the East Smithfield plague pits used for mass burials in 1348 and 1349. Additional samples were also taken from remains in five other locations across Denmark.
The researchers found that people with two identical copies of one immune system gene in particular, ERAP2, survived the pandemic at much higher rates, because this particular gene allowed for more efficient neutralization ofPeople with the protective variant of ERAP2 were 40% to 50% more likely to survive than those with a bad copy of the gene, the investigators found.
Even a slight advantage means the difference between surviving or passing," said evolutionary geneticist Hendrik Poinar, director of McMaster University's Ancient DNA Center in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. "Of course, those survivors who are of breeding age will pass on their genes.
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