Y alu polymorphism as a quilt


I suppose this is a good follow-up to the post on Gray's Anatomy. (The study of genetics is the new study of anatomy, right?) The image above is a quilt that is designed to show a YAP genomic sequence: "the Y alu polymorphism sequence of an Italian male is encoded in this quilt. The quilt is made of shot silk, which reflects light differently depending on the orientation of the weave and the viewer." The quilt is by Beverly St. Clair, a psychiatrist who is also a quilter, and more explanation of her method and how to read the quilt can be found on her website.

I chose this YAP quilt because the Y alu polymorphism is a unique marker that can be used to trace male ancestry via the Y-chromosome. You may have seen this in the news with regard to the Lemba tribe in Africa. Here is a link to one of the first primary source document for YAP. And here is an example of how it can be used in genetic population studies.

via BoingBoing

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