Eco-Anthropologie et Ethnobiologie, UMR 7206 CNRS, MNHN, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, Paris, France.
Bioessays. 2012 Apr;34(4):267-71. doi: 10.1002/bies.201100150. Epub 2012 Feb 16.
The role of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) in mate choice in humans is controversial. Nowadays, the availability of genetic variation data at genomic scales allows for a careful assessment of this question. In 2008, Chaix et al. reported evidence for MHC-dependent mate choice among European American spouses from the HapMap 2 dataset. Recently, Derti et al. suggested that this observation was not robust. Furthermore, when Derti et al. applied similar analyses to the HapMap 3 European American samples, they did not see a significant effect. Although some of the points raised by Derti et al. are relevant, we disagree with the reported absence of evidence for MHC-dependent mate choice within the HapMap samples. More precisely, we show here that the MHC dissimilarity among HapMap 3 European American spouses is still extreme in comparison to the rest of the genome, even after multiple testing correction. This finding supports the hypothesis of MHC-dependent mate choice in some human populations.
主要组织相容性复合体（MHC）在人类配偶选择中的作用存在争议。如今，基因组规模的遗传变异数据的可用性使得我们可以仔细评估这个问题。2008 年，Chaix 等人在 HapMap 2 数据集报告了欧洲裔美国配偶中 MHC 依赖的配偶选择的证据。最近，Derti 等人认为这种观察结果并不稳健。此外，当 Derti 等人将类似的分析应用于 HapMap 3 欧洲裔美国样本时，他们没有看到显著的效果。尽管 Derti 等人提出的一些观点是相关的，但我们不同意 HapMap 样本中没有 MHC 依赖的配偶选择证据的报道。更确切地说，我们在这里表明，即使在多次测试校正后，HapMap 3 欧洲裔美国配偶之间的 MHC 差异与基因组的其他部分相比仍然非常极端。这一发现支持了在一些人类群体中 MHC 依赖的配偶选择的假设。
