Chapter 26, Problem 2DAA

Data Analysis Activities

Neanderthal Hair Color The MC1R gene regulates pigmentation in humans (Sections 13.5 and 14.2), so Loss-of-function mutations in this gene affect hair and skin color. A person with two mutated alleles for this gene makes more of the reddish melanin than the brownish melanin, resu.lti.ng in red hair and pale skin. DNA extracted from two Neanderthal fossils contains a mutated MC1R allele that has not yet been found in humans. To see how the Neanderthal mutation affects the function of the MC1R gene, Carles Lalueza-Fox and her team introduced the allele in to cultured monkey cells (FIGURE 26.12).

FIGURE 26.12 MC1Ractivity. Activity is shown in monkey cells transgenic for an unmutated MC1R gene, the Neanderthal MC1R allele, or the gene for green fluorescent protein (GFP). GFP is not related to MC1R.

What does this imply about the mutation’s effect on Neanderthal hair color?