Outreach + Highlights
The AGP laboratory conducts research on the diversity and biological evolution of human populations, with the main objective of reconstructing the history of world settlement since the origin of Homo sapiens.
HLA class I molecular variation and peptide-binding properties suggest a model of joint divergent asymmetric selection
The main function of HLA class I molecules is to present pathogen-derived peptides to cytotoxic T lymphocytes. This function is assumed to drive the maintenance of an extraordinary amount of polymorphism at each HLA locus, providing an immune advantage to heterozygote individuals capable to present larger repertories of peptides than homozygotes.
Prof. Alicia Sanchez-Mazas appointed Section Editor of HLA
Prof. Alicia Sanchez-Mazas was appointed Section Editor of HLA (previously Tissue Antigens), the official journal of the European Federation for Immunogenetics (EFI), and is in charge of the “HLA polymorphism in populations” Section.
Variation in NAT2 acetylation phenotypes is associated with differences in food-producing subsistence modes and ecoregions in Africa
Dietary changes associated to shifts in subsistence strategies during human evolution may have induced new selective pressures on phenotypes, as currently held for lactase persistence. Similar hypotheses exist for arylamine N-acetyltransferase 2 (NAT2) mediated acetylation capacity, a well-known pharmacogenetic trait with wide inter-individual variation explained by polymorphisms in the NAT2 gene.
Computer simulation of human leukocyte antigen genes supports two main routes of colonization by human populations in East Asia
Recent genetic studies have suggested that the colonization of East Asia by modern humans was more complex than a single origin from the South, and that a genetic contribution via a Northern route was probably quite substantial.
Upper palaeolithic genomes reveal deep roots of modern eurasians
We extend the scope of European palaeogenomics by sequencing the genomes of Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,300 years old, 1.4-fold coverage) and Mesolithic (9,700 years old, 15.4-fold) males from western Georgia in the Caucasus and a Late Upper Palaeolithic (13,700 years old, 9.5-fold) male from Switzerland.
HLA supertype variation across populations: new insights into the role of natural selection in the evolution of HLA-A and HLA-B polymorphisms
Supertypes are groups of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles which bind overlapping sets of peptides due to sharing specific residues at the anchor positions—the B and F pockets—of the peptide-binding region (PBR).
Nos amis sont-ils nos cousins?
La professeure Alicia Sanchez-Mazas nous éclaire sur l'affirmation de chercheurs américains selon laquelle, nous aurions tous tendance, inconsciemment, à choisir comme amis des individus génétiquement proches de nous.
Human & Great Apes Speciation : Molecular Insights
What differentiates our species from our closest relatives, the great apes, at the genomic level?
Three eminent specialists will address this issue through specific approaches: the story according to chromosome rearrangements, the analysis of the MHC complex, and recent evidence based on next generation sequencing data.
Genetic Diversity and the Origins of Europeans
The main objective of this conference is to round-up our knowledge on human genetic diversity in Europeans and to discuss on how to interpret this diversity in relation to both population history and other evolutionary forces like natural selection.
Neutral Theory of Molecular Evolution
Quarante ans après Kimura, et compte-tenu des développements spectaculaires de la génétique moléculaire et des évidences de sélection dans de nombreaux gènes, qu'en pense-t-on?