People with at least one copy of the HLA-B53 gene are better able to beat back malarial infections before the infection progresses. If this is a coevolutionary arms race between Plasmodium and humans, what would the next step in this race be?

Question

Biology

Elisa Stafford

6 May, 23:00

People with at least one copy of the HLA-B53 gene are better able to beat back malarial infections before the infection progresses. If this is a coevolutionary arms race between Plasmodium and humans, what would the next step in this race be?

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Answers (1)

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Bruno Chavez · Answer 1

The plasmodium develop a mutation making them more infectious

Explanation:

An evolutionary arms race is the process where two competing genes are co-evolving, developing adaptations against each other. In this case, the plasmodium might spontaneously develop a mutation that allows them to counteract the protective effects of the HLA-B53 gene. This could be enhanced virulence or enhanced ability to avoid detection by the immune system.