TY - JOUR
T1 - Constructing genomic maps of positive selection in humans
T2 - Where do we go from here?
AU - Akey, Joshua M.
N1 - Copyright:
Copyright 2009 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2009/5
Y1 - 2009/5
N2 - Identifying targets of positive selection in humans has, until recently, been frustratingly slow, relying on the analysis of individual candidate genes. Genomics, however, has provided the necessary resources to systematically interrogate the entire genome for signatures of natural selection. To date, 21 genome-wide scans for recent or ongoing positive selection have been performed in humans. A key challenge is to begin synthesizing these newly constructed maps of positive selection into a coherent narrative of human evolutionary history and derive a deeper mechanistic understanding of how natural populations evolve. Here, I chronicle the recent history of the burgeoning field of human population genomics, critically assess genome-wide scans for positive selection in humans, identify important gaps in knowledge, and discuss both short- and long-term strategies for traversing the path from the low-resolution, incomplete, and error-prone maps of selection today to the ultimate goal of a detailed molecular, mechanistic, phenotypic, and population genetics characterization of adaptive alleles.
AB - Identifying targets of positive selection in humans has, until recently, been frustratingly slow, relying on the analysis of individual candidate genes. Genomics, however, has provided the necessary resources to systematically interrogate the entire genome for signatures of natural selection. To date, 21 genome-wide scans for recent or ongoing positive selection have been performed in humans. A key challenge is to begin synthesizing these newly constructed maps of positive selection into a coherent narrative of human evolutionary history and derive a deeper mechanistic understanding of how natural populations evolve. Here, I chronicle the recent history of the burgeoning field of human population genomics, critically assess genome-wide scans for positive selection in humans, identify important gaps in knowledge, and discuss both short- and long-term strategies for traversing the path from the low-resolution, incomplete, and error-prone maps of selection today to the ultimate goal of a detailed molecular, mechanistic, phenotypic, and population genetics characterization of adaptive alleles.
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U2 - 10.1101/gr.086652.108
DO - 10.1101/gr.086652.108
M3 - Review article
C2 - 19411596
AN - SCOPUS:65149103048
VL - 19
SP - 711
EP - 722
JO - Genome Research
JF - Genome Research
SN - 1088-9051
IS - 5
ER -