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Investigations of the population genetics of Hb S, thalassemia and G-6-PD deficiency in Greece
A~STRACTS
703
Changes Due to Acceleration in the Somatotypology of Students in the town of Plodiv, by Iv. Petrov & M. Nikolova (University of Plovdiv "P, Hilendarski", Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Plovdiv, Bulgaria) Changes due to acceleration have been studied in two homogeneous groups of students belonging to the same population, territory and age. The first group includes 238 students investigated in 1960 and the second group consists of students measured in 1980:26 body indices have been analysed. Students from the second group are taller and heavier compared with those investigated in 1960. The increase of body weight gets ahead the one of height. Acceleration processes lead to an increase of the dimensions of the whole body and of its parts, with the exception of the thorax. Rates of acceleration in separate indices are not equivalent, which causes slight changes in body proportions. Anticipating rise of the weight and the inhibition in development of the chest are in disharmony with positive acceleration phenomena.
Menarche and Pelvis size of University Students in the Town of Plovdiv, by M. Batchvarova & V. Petrov (University of Plovdiv "P. Hilendarski", Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Plovdiv, Bulgaria) Students from all the high schools in Plovdiv were examined. The timc and the season o f m e n a r c h e appearance were anamnestically studied. The authors tried to find the relationships between the age of menarche and the present body size and the social origin of the students. The pelvimetric method was used to measure the proportions of the pelvis. T h e relations between pelvis proportions and the time and the season of menarcbe appearance as well as its duration, regularity and cycling were studied. It was found that students with a narrow pelvis have relatively earlier menarche appearance with a m a x i m u m frequency in winter, and a minil'num in summer. Students with average of wide pelvis have a m a x i m u m menarche frequency in summer.
Investigations of the Population Genetics of Hb S, Thalassemia and G-6-PD Deficiency in Greece, by R. Schliwa, H. Walter & G. Tsiakalos (Department of Biology, University of Bremen, Bremen, West Germany) Populations samples from the islands of the Northern Aegean Sea and from the Chalkidiki peninsula were investigated for hemoglobin variants (especially Hb S), thalassemia, and G-6-PD deficiency. Based on the gene frequencies of these genetic systems several differentiation models are discussed, which take into account different assumptions. Above all, the hypothesis concerning the extent of correlation among the frequencies of these genes and malaria morbidity and mortality, respectively, is examined.
Genetic Studies in the Swiss Alps, by W. Scheffrahn (Anthropologisches Institut und Museum, Universit/it Z/irich-Irchel, Z/irich, Switzerland) T h e paper deals with the genetic structure of the populations in the Rh6ne and Visp valleys on the basis of blood markers (blood groups, enzymes, serum proteins). The gene distributions in these valleys arc discussed in connection with the history of the populations. The combination of demographic and hemogenetic data in the Visp valleys offers examples for the evolutionary factors "thunder principle" and "migration". The data available demonstrate that it is quite advantageous in hcmogenetical studies about small populations to use their demographical background and the comparison with neighbouring populations. In this connection it is easy to show that the alleles H p I and 6-PGD B increase, while the alleles Gc ~s and C 3 F decrease in the Visp valleys according to the distance from the Rh6ne valley, which is inhabited by more intermixed populations. Incidentally, the Rh6ne valley can be divided by means of population history and genetic structure into three regions. Furthermore, some comments are made on the demographic and genetic structure of the relatively isolated village population of T6rbel in the Visp valley. This population is characterized by the village variant Gc los. The allele frequency of Gc lc:~ is extremely high in this population due to the founder effect. Recent investigations show that this allele is also present in the neighbouring village populations to which T6rbel is linked by m a n y familial bonds (migration), but that it is absent in the Rh6ne valley and in other Swiss populations.
Phenylthiocarbamide Tasting Ability in a Sample of Bolognese Population, by Emanuela Gualdi-Russo (Istituto di Antropologia, Universitk degli Studi di Bologna, Bologna, Italy) The taste thresholds for PTC were determined on a group of 525 adults (267 males and 258 females) from Bologna (Northern Italy) using serial dilutions in the sorting test. The frequency of non-tasters was observed to be 14.67% and the t gene frequency was 0'38. A higher frequency of non-tasters was observed among males than among females. The PTC taste sensitivity did not change in relation to age. The estimates reported in this population are compared with those of other populations.
703
Changes Due to Acceleration in the Somatotypology of Students in the town of Plodiv, by Iv. Petrov & M. Nikolova (University of Plovdiv "P, Hilendarski", Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Plovdiv, Bulgaria) Changes due to acceleration have been studied in two homogeneous groups of students belonging to the same population, territory and age. The first group includes 238 students investigated in 1960 and the second group consists of students measured in 1980:26 body indices have been analysed. Students from the second group are taller and heavier compared with those investigated in 1960. The increase of body weight gets ahead the one of height. Acceleration processes lead to an increase of the dimensions of the whole body and of its parts, with the exception of the thorax. Rates of acceleration in separate indices are not equivalent, which causes slight changes in body proportions. Anticipating rise of the weight and the inhibition in development of the chest are in disharmony with positive acceleration phenomena.
Menarche and Pelvis size of University Students in the Town of Plovdiv, by M. Batchvarova & V. Petrov (University of Plovdiv "P. Hilendarski", Department of Anatomy and Physiology, Plovdiv, Bulgaria) Students from all the high schools in Plovdiv were examined. The timc and the season o f m e n a r c h e appearance were anamnestically studied. The authors tried to find the relationships between the age of menarche and the present body size and the social origin of the students. The pelvimetric method was used to measure the proportions of the pelvis. T h e relations between pelvis proportions and the time and the season of menarcbe appearance as well as its duration, regularity and cycling were studied. It was found that students with a narrow pelvis have relatively earlier menarche appearance with a m a x i m u m frequency in winter, and a minil'num in summer. Students with average of wide pelvis have a m a x i m u m menarche frequency in summer.
Investigations of the Population Genetics of Hb S, Thalassemia and G-6-PD Deficiency in Greece, by R. Schliwa, H. Walter & G. Tsiakalos (Department of Biology, University of Bremen, Bremen, West Germany) Populations samples from the islands of the Northern Aegean Sea and from the Chalkidiki peninsula were investigated for hemoglobin variants (especially Hb S), thalassemia, and G-6-PD deficiency. Based on the gene frequencies of these genetic systems several differentiation models are discussed, which take into account different assumptions. Above all, the hypothesis concerning the extent of correlation among the frequencies of these genes and malaria morbidity and mortality, respectively, is examined.
Genetic Studies in the Swiss Alps, by W. Scheffrahn (Anthropologisches Institut und Museum, Universit/it Z/irich-Irchel, Z/irich, Switzerland) T h e paper deals with the genetic structure of the populations in the Rh6ne and Visp valleys on the basis of blood markers (blood groups, enzymes, serum proteins). The gene distributions in these valleys arc discussed in connection with the history of the populations. The combination of demographic and hemogenetic data in the Visp valleys offers examples for the evolutionary factors "thunder principle" and "migration". The data available demonstrate that it is quite advantageous in hcmogenetical studies about small populations to use their demographical background and the comparison with neighbouring populations. In this connection it is easy to show that the alleles H p I and 6-PGD B increase, while the alleles Gc ~s and C 3 F decrease in the Visp valleys according to the distance from the Rh6ne valley, which is inhabited by more intermixed populations. Incidentally, the Rh6ne valley can be divided by means of population history and genetic structure into three regions. Furthermore, some comments are made on the demographic and genetic structure of the relatively isolated village population of T6rbel in the Visp valley. This population is characterized by the village variant Gc los. The allele frequency of Gc lc:~ is extremely high in this population due to the founder effect. Recent investigations show that this allele is also present in the neighbouring village populations to which T6rbel is linked by m a n y familial bonds (migration), but that it is absent in the Rh6ne valley and in other Swiss populations.
Phenylthiocarbamide Tasting Ability in a Sample of Bolognese Population, by Emanuela Gualdi-Russo (Istituto di Antropologia, Universitk degli Studi di Bologna, Bologna, Italy) The taste thresholds for PTC were determined on a group of 525 adults (267 males and 258 females) from Bologna (Northern Italy) using serial dilutions in the sorting test. The frequency of non-tasters was observed to be 14.67% and the t gene frequency was 0'38. A higher frequency of non-tasters was observed among males than among females. The PTC taste sensitivity did not change in relation to age. The estimates reported in this population are compared with those of other populations.