Contact:
Julian Mattocks
Phone: +43-1-81140-308
E-Mail: mattocks@pressetext.com
| Pressbox | 
|
Glasgow (pte027/29.11.2004/13:10) - Researchers have found that the endurance running prowess if Ethiopia's athletes is partly dictated by their genes. As the online scientific service New Scientist http://www.newscientist.com reports, a recent study has established that such athletes are more likely to have certain variants of four Y chromosome genes compared with other Ethiopians. Although it is still unclear what the genes do or how influential they are, they are the first to be linked to the east Africans' dominance in endurance events.
The study, carried out by Yannis Pitsalidis and a team of researchers of the International Centre for East African Running Science at the University of Glasgow, tested the Ychromosomes of elite athletes, urban dwellers and other non-athletes from the Ethiopian region of Arsi, an origin of many runners. Four variants of gene were more common among the athletes and one was less common. No mutation was unique to the athletes, suggesting that it is the combination of certain gene types that makes the difference.
"The athletes do show differences from the population as a whole," said Pitsalidis. "But they are not so overwhelming to say that this is the reason for their success." No single gene for endurance running emerged.
Ethiopian and Kenyan athletes have run 37 of the 40 fastest times in the history of the 10,000 metres. Pitsalidis' team, whose results are to be published in "Human Genetics", are set to analyse Kenyan endurance athletes in the same way.
(end)
|
|
