DOWNS-SYNDROME AS A MODEL FOR THE DECISIVE ROLE OF MATERNAL LINEAGE IN HUMAN-EVOLUTION

The study of human evolution and the mechanism of this process can be approached from physical anthropology, which examines phenotypic expre ssion and molecular evolution, which investigates genotypic change. Al ternatively, we suggest that human evolutional process can also be exp lained using present day examples of abberations in evolution. Thus, f rom both genotypic and phenotypic perspectives, we address the questio n of whether Down's syndrome is an instructive example to look into th e decisive role of maternal lineage in human evolution.