Analysis of the beta-globin gene in DNA of suspected thalassemic great apes
“Analysis of the beta-globin gene in DNA of suspected thalassemic great apes”, vol. 12, pp. 1731-1739, 2013.
, DNA was recovered from teeth of 2 great ape skeletons, Pan troglodytes (Ptr) and Pongo pygmaeus (Ppy), belonging to a 19th-century zoological collection. The skeletons presented morphological alterations possibly associated with β-thalassemia: Ptr had deformation of the calvaria and oro-maxillo-facial bones with porotic hyperostosis and extended osteoporotic lesions of the skeleton, while Ppy showed a general marked widening of the calvarial diploe but moderate osteoporotic signs on the post-cranial skeleton.