Publications

Representative Publications
*For a full publication list, please visit Google Scholar.

A weakly structured stem for human origins in Africa

AP Ragsdale, TD Weaver, EG Atkinson, EG Hoal, M Möller, BM Henn, S Gravel. (2023) A weakly structured stem for human origins in Africa. Nature. 617, 755-763. (link)

McGill Newsroom article (May 2023): A new understanding of human origins in Africa

New York Times article (May 2023): Study Offers New Twist in How the First Humans Evolved

An Unexpectedly Complex Architecture for Skin Pigmentation in Africans

AR Martin, M Lin, JM Granka, JW Myrick, X Liu, A Sockell, EG Atkinson, CJ Werely, M Möller, DM Kingsley, EG Hoal, X Liu, MW Feldman, CR Gignoux, CD Bustamante, BM Henn. (2017) An Unexpectedly Complex Architecture for Skin Pigmentation in Africans. Cell. 171(6), 1340-1353. e14 -

Newsweek article (November 2017): Why Is Skin Color Different? Huge Genetic Study Reveals Prevailing Theory of Pigmentation is Wrong

Ancient human genomes suggest three ancestral populations for present-day Europeans

I Lazaridis, N Patterson, A Mittnik, G Renaud, S Mallick, K Kirsanow, PH Sudmant, JG Schraiber, S Castellano, M Lipson, B Berger, C Economou, R Bollongino, Q Fu, KI Bos, S Nordenfelt, H Li, C de Filippo, K Prüfer, S Sawyer, et al. (2014) Ancient human genomes suggest three ancestral populations for present-day Europeans. Nature. 513, 409-413.

BBC News article (September 2014): Europeans drawn from three ancient 'tribes'

Rapid evolution of a skin-lightening allele in southern African KhoeSan

M Lin, RL Siford, AR Martin, S Nakagome, M Möller, EG Hoal, CD Bustamante, CR Gignoux, BM Henn. (2018) Rapid evolution of a skin-lightening allele in southern African KhoeSan. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 115(52), 13324-13329.

BBC Radio 4 Inside Science interview (December 2018): Rapid evolution in Khoe San

BBC Science In Action interview (December 2018): Skin tone study in Southern African populations

Population genetic analysis of the DARC locus (Duffy) reveals adaptation from standing variation associated with malaria resistance in humans

KF McManus, A Taravella, BM Henn, CD Bustamante, M Sikora, OE Cornejo. (2017) Population genetic analysis of the DARC locus (Duffy) reveals adaptation from standing variation associated with malaria resistance in humans. PLoS Genetics. 13(3): e1006560. -

Science Magazine article (March 2017): Dramatic evolution within human genome may have been caused by malaria parasite

No Evidence for Recent Selection at FOXP2 among Diverse Human Populations

EG Atkinson, AJ Audesse, JA Palacios, DM Bobo, AE Webb, S Ramachandran, BM Henn. (2018) No Evidence for Recent Selection at FOXP2 among Diverse Human Populations. Cell. 174(6), 1424-1435.

EMBO reports article (January 2019): The riddle of speech

Nature article (August 2018): FOXP2 tells a cautionary tale

Loss and Gain of Natural Killer Cell Receptor Function in an African Hunter-Gatherer Population

G Hilton, PJ Norman, N Nemat-Gorgani, A Goyos, JA Hollenbach, BM Henn, CR Gignoux, LA Guethlein, P Parham. (2015) Loss and Gain of Natural Killer Cell Receptor Function in an African Hunter-Gatherer Population. PLoS Genetics. 11(8): e1005439 -

New York Times article (August 2015): Mutation Reduces Pregnancy Complications for Africa’s Khoe-San People