Bruce Lahn

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Bruce Lahn

Bruce Lahn (1969- ) is a geneticist at the University of Chicago specializing in evolutionary genetics, especially the genetic basis that underlies the dramatic evolutionary changes of the human brain. Lahn's other research interests include stem cell biology and neurogenetics. Lahn came to the U.S. from China to continue his education after being a leader in the pro-democracy movement of the late 1980s.^[1]

Lahn's honors include the Merrill Lynch Forum Global Innovation Award, the TR100 Award from Technology Review, the Burroughs Wellcome Career Award, and a Searle scholarship. He was recently named to the 40-Under-40 list by Crains Chicago Business. Lahn received his B.A. in biology from Harvard University and his Ph. D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

[edit] Contributions

Bruce Lahn's best-known contribution to science was his discovery of alleles of the genes microcephalin and ASPM that result in larger brain size and conceivably to higher intelligence as well. Bruce Lahn discovered that the larger-brain microcephalin mutation occurred at 35,000 +/-10,000 BCE, and is currently prevalent in the people of the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and the Americas, and that the larger-brain ASPM mutation occurred at 4,000 +/-4,000 BCE, and is currently prevalent in the people of the Middle East and Europe. The research has proved controversial.^[2]