Summary
On the basis of own and from the widely scattered literature compiled materials the geographical distribution of the transferrin alleles is discussed. They reveal a characteristic distribution pattern, as the slow Tf variants produced by TfD alleles are obviously more frequent in tropical than in non-tropical populations. Considering similar results in cattle and its interpretation by Ashton (1958, 1965), it is hypothesized, that the relatively high TfΓ frequencies in tropical biotops might be a selective adaptation to their special climatic conditions. In this connection an association between slowly moving transferrin proteins in man and tolerance to hotter climates — as could be found in cattle — is supposed. Further studies on the physiological function of the human transferrin and particularly of its various variants are necessary, however, either to prove or to reject our hypothesis.
Zusammenfassung
An Hand eigener und aus der weitverstreuten Literatur zusammengetragenen Daten wird die geographische Verteilung der Transferrin-Allele diskutiert. Dabei konnte ein charakteristisches Verteilungsmuster festgestellt werden, indem die langsamwandernde Tf-Varianten bedingende TfD-Allele bei tropischen Populationen deutlich häufiger sind als bei nichttropischen. Unter Berücksichtigung ähnlicher Beobachtungen an Rindern und ihrer Interpretation (Ashton, 1958, 1965) wird vermutet, daß die relativ hohen TfD-Frequenzen in tropischen Populationen als selektive Adaptationen an die spezifischen klimatischen Gegebenheiten ihrer Biotope denkbar sind. In diesem Zusammenhang wird eine Beziehung zwischen den langsamwandernden Tf-Varianten und der Hitzetoleranz für möglich gehalten. wie das bei Rindern zumindest wahrscheinlich gemacht werden konnte. Weitere Untersuchungen über die physiologische Funktion des menschlichen Transferrins und insbesondere seiner verschiedenen Varianten sind jedoch erforderlich, um diese Hypothese absichern zu können.
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Walter, H., Bajatzadeh, M. Investigations on the geographical variability of the human transferrins. Hum Genet 12, 267–274 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00278047
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00278047