ANTH-3460: Biocultural Human Life Course

all classes

What is abiotic?

non living ex. temperature, humidity

What is biotic?

humans, organisms, plants

Who is Rene Descartes?

first thinker to emphasize the use of reason to develop natural sciences

What is Rene Descartes discover?

mind can interact with physical body, sensation and perception of reality are illusions

What’s the saying Rene Descartes is known for?

I think therefore I am

What are the biomedical model’s 3 assumptions

1. all illness has an underlying cause

2. disease is always the cause

3. removing disease results in health

What are some issues with the biomedical model?

limited focus on body and technology, ignores personal and social contexts

what was the aim of sebastian and charlottes study?

to identify medical anthropologists at universities in canada and who uses the biocultural method

why is the biocultural method underreported? lec. 2

lack of clear definition and implicit vs. explicit

what percent of medical anthropologists implicitly used the biocultural approach?

59%

what are the evolutionary forces that affect which genes are present in a population?

mutation, natural selection, gene flow, random genetic drift

what is gene flow?

movement of alleles from one population to another due to procreation across populations

what is random genetic drift?

certain genes becoming more or less common in a population

what is a possible cause of genetic drift?

bottleneck or migration

what mating factors affect which genes are present in a population?

random mating, assortative mating, inbreeding

what is assortative mating?

choosing a mate based on certain traits

what is macroevolution?

large-scale change

what is microevolution?

smaller-scale change, typically over generations

what size populations are more susceptible to genetic drift?

smaller populations because allele frequencies are more likely to be affected by small changes

what is fitness?

reproductive success

what blood types are less compatible for reproduction?

type O mothers and type A or B fathers, they have fewer offspring

what are the 6 features of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Tuberculosis)?

• non-motile and rod shaped

• covered in waxy sheath

• does not produce any significant toxins

• multiplies slowly

• can survive outside human host

• can survive desiccation

what is TB the product of?

urban poverty with crowding, cramped living quarters, and poor nutrition

which population is tay sachs most prominent?

Ashkenazi Jews

Why is there a higher rate of Tay Sachs among Jewish people?

differential mutation and ascertainment bias

what is the heterozygote advantage theory for Tay Sachs?

having Tt (no tay sachs) could give and advantage cause one gene is normal

What are the characteristics of Gaucher disease?

• enlarged spleen

• bone and joint pain

• variable age of onset

  • non-lethal

What are the characteristics of Niemann-Pick (type A)?

• abdominal enlargment

• physical & mental retardation by 6 months

• death by 3 years

• more common in jewish populations

Characteristics of Tay-Sachs disease?

• mental and physical retardation by 2-3 years

• dementia and blindness by 2-3 years

• death around 2-4 years

what is the fitness of a homozygous TSD

0% because they do not survive

what causes the blindness in TSD?

GN2 gangleosime accumulating in the brain and nerve cells

What chromosome is Hex A found on?

the long arm of 15

why is TSD higher in Jewish people?

incest marriages due to laws prohibiting jewish people from marrying non-jewish

What kind of transmission spreads Ebola?

zoonotic

What are the symptoms of ebola?

coughing, aches, fatigue, bleeding, vomiting, diarrhea, organ disfunction

What are the treatments for Ebola?

no treatments, rehydrate with fluids

What is the weak health infrastructure factor in the Ebola epidemic?

outbreak circulated for weeks before it was confirmed

what is the community mistrust factor of the ebola spread?

people not trusting that ebola is real, attacks on health centers

how does one become infected with ebola?

direct contact

How did cleanliness in the documentary relate to the biocultural approach?

cleaner = closer to god, more chemicals present which made more accidental deaths

How did the staircases in the documentary relate to the biocultural approach?

servants would have steeper steps than the family in the house, caused more deaths

How did bovine TB relate to the documentary?

borax put into milk to remove sour smell and increase shelf life, caused bovine TB to be undetected

how is an infants mortality risk determined?

where an individual falls relative to the average birth weight in his or her population

what is mortality?

number of deaths in a population

what is folate (vitamin B) important for in pregnancy?

brain and spinal development

What is vitamin D important for in pregnancy?

bone development, immune system, reduced PIH

what are variation and infant birth weight influenced by?

genetics and environment

what is adult onset rickets called?

osteomalacia

why do women get morning sickness?

embryo doesn’t have detoxification mechanisms

what is Rh positive?

when person with DD or Dd have Rh antigen on their RBCs

what is Rh negative?

person with dd do not have Rh antigen

what is the maternal-fetal incompatibility in HDN?

when DD Rh positive man and Rh negative woman produce children, the children will be Rh positive and have the Rh antigen

How do HDN and ABO blood groups cause incompatibility?

when a mother with O is pregnant with baby who is a different blood type. Mothers serum contains anti-A and anti-B and destroy fetal RBCs

Why is the first Rh-incompatible child usually fine?

few of the fetuses RBCs cross the placenta barrier during gestation

What happens when fetal Rh positive cells ender the mothers bloodstream?

cells stimulate production of anti-Rh antibodies by mother and destroy next Rh positive offsprings RBCs

How does HDN kill a fetus?

destruction of RBCs make fetus anemic, fetus releases immature nucleated RBCs into blood stream and cause death

what is bilirubin?

red bile pigment formed from hemoglobin during destruction of RBCs

what is excess bilirubin associated with?

jaundice

how can mothers avoid Rh sensitization?

during and after pregnancy, Rh negative mothers given injection with anti-Rh antibodies

How do the injections of anti-Rh antibodies work?

intervenes and destroys RBCs before they stimulate mother’s anti-Rh antibodies when mother is pregnant

Why is the Rh allele still an issue?

being Rh positive may factor in rheumatic fever, selection for Dd