Is black skin an evolutionary protection against skin cancer?

The new analysis suggests that black skin may have evolved to protect people from skin cancer. Professor Mel Grivis, of the London Institute for Cancer Research in the UK, said:

“Clinical evidence on albino humans, particularly those living in African countries, provides strong evidence that deadly cancers may have played a major role in early human evolution, as an important factor in the evolution of skin that is rich in dark pigmentation — or eumelanin.”

Eumelanin is a brown-and-black version of melanin, a naturally occurring substance that gives color to the skin, hair and iris of the eyes, including protecting human skin from the sun. This substance is much more effective than other variants of melanin in preventing DNA damage, which can subsequently lead to the development of skin cancers.

Although scientists agree that the features of black skin developed in humans due to the ability of eumelanin to thicken ultraviolet radiation.

In his analysis, Professor Greaves cites studies that scientifically prove that more than 80 percent of people with albinism who live in African equatorial countries — such as Nigeria and Tanzania — develop fatal skin cancers before the age of 30.



Source: globalscience.ru