Lice Genomes Uniquely Fragmented: How Did It Evolve?
Monday, April 6, 2009 - 23:35
in Biology & Nature
Parents and school nurses take note. Lice are a nuisance and vectors of serious diseases, such as epidemic typhus, in developing regions. New research indicates that lice may be quite unique in the animal world. In a study published in Genome Research, scientists analyzed the mitochondrial genome of the human body louse and discovered that it is fragmented into pieces -- a remarkable finding in animals that will spark discussion about how it evolved.