[Plasmodium falciparum was a quiet ancient organism. Recent biomolecular research has dated their existense to 100,000 years ago.]
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70,000 years ago, we Homo Sapiens were roaming in Africa and Mediterranean and were just preparing to migrate Eastward in search of a warmer climates of the tropics. To Asia minor, India, Australia. Rest of the world.
Your Texas, Seattle, New York, Beijing and Tokyo were buried under kilometers of Ice sheets then.
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This fever, today we call Malaria used to affect half of those ancient mankind and killed almost one third of our fore fathers. DNA evidence today confirms that a lethal outbreak of Malaria in the 5th AD, ( 05 years after Christ was born) led to the downfall of the powerful Roman empire.
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Then Evolution had a MASTER STROKE. It found out that this damned parasite must enter into a RBC to FEED on the Globin for survival and propagation. A point mutation in the Globin gene prevents this feeding and survival of Plasmodium inside the RBCs.
Thus People with thalassemic hemoglobin in Mediterranean and Sickled hemoglobin in Africa have survived the onslaught of Malaria to continue our race on this Earth.
Till the discovery of the magic elixir from the Cinchona bark, Sickling and Thalassemia are the nature’s only defense against this deadly parasite for continuation of human species on this planet.
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It’s only when people survived malaria, then only the lethal effect of a double dose of this mutation ( Sickle cell disease and Thalassemia Major) became a menace.
But for evolution that is just a small collateral damage for the survival of a whole species on this planet.
EVOLUTION always WINS.
Dr Ramakanta's Ideas 