Cell Biology and Gene Expression Unit, Laboratory of Neurogenetics, National Institute on Aging, Bethesda, MD 20892-3707, USA.
Curr Biol. 2012 Sep 11;22(17):R753-61. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2012.07.008.
A number of neurodegenerative diseases principally affect humans as they age and are characterized by the loss of specific groups of neurons in different brain regions. Although these disorders are generally sporadic, it is now clear that many of them have a substantial genetic component. As genes are the raw material with which evolution works, we might benefit from understanding these genes in an evolutionary framework. Here, I will discuss how we can understand whether evolution has shaped genes involved in neurodegeneration and the implications for practical issues, such as our choice of model systems for studying these diseases, and more theoretical concerns, such as the level of selection against these phenotypes.
许多神经退行性疾病主要影响老年人，并以不同大脑区域中特定神经元群体的丧失为特征。尽管这些疾病通常是散发性的，但现在很清楚，其中许多疾病都有很大的遗传成分。由于基因是进化所依赖的原材料，我们可能会受益于在进化框架下理解这些基因。在这里，我将讨论我们如何理解进化是否塑造了与神经退行性变相关的基因，以及这对实际问题的影响，例如我们选择用于研究这些疾病的模型系统，以及更具理论性的问题，例如针对这些表型的选择水平。
