Table Of ContentAdvances in the Evolutionary Analysis of Human Behaviour
Alexandra Alvergne
Crispin Jenkinson
Charlotte Faurie E ditors
Evolutionary
Thinking in
Medicine
From Research to Policy and Practice
Alexandra Alvergne Crispin Jenkinson
(cid:129)
Charlotte Faurie
Editors
Evolutionary Thinking
in Medicine
From Research to Policy and Practice
123
Editors
Alexandra Alvergne Charlotte Faurie
Oxford Montpellier
UK France
Crispin Jenkinson
Oxford
UK
Advances in theEvolutionary Analysis of HumanBehaviour
ISBN978-3-319-29714-9 ISBN978-3-319-29716-3 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-29716-3
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2016931844
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Preface
Evolution in medicine?! Never heard of it! This quote, in essence, sums up the
reaction of a medical doctor who kindly accepted to review the proposal for this
book. Far from substantiating the received idea according to which doctors are
against any new approach to their field, it shows that health professionals know
littleabouttherelevanceofevolutionarythinkingformedicalpractice.Atfirst,this
may be surprising: the idea that evolution can inform medicine is not new—
Erasmus Darwin, Darwin’s grandfather and a medical practitioner, hinted at this
conceptual breakthrough more than 200 years ago—and evolutionary biologists
have pleaded for more evolution into medicine for about two decades. In addition,
medicine is repeatedly confronted to evolution: practitioners have to deal with
antibiotic resistance, therapid changes of a virus, orthe evolutionoftumour cells.
Yet,evolutionisnotpartofthemedicalcurriculumofmostuniversitiesandwhatis
more, most medical students and doctors have just “never heard of it”. At second
glance, however, this is not surprising.
Until recently, most evolutionary medicine publications did not really target
medical practitioners or were published in evolutionary rather than medical jour-
nals. Further, most books on the topic are organized into a structure that reflects
evolutionary biology sub-fields which are not familiar to medical doctors (e.g. life
history theory, host–parasite co-evolution) rather than sub-fields of medicine (car-
diology,oncology,obstetrics).Medicineishighlyspecializedandalreadyrequiresa
considerableamountofknowledge,andonecannotexpectitspractitionerstoteach
themselvesthebasisofevolutionarybiologythatarerequiredtodiveefficientlyinto
the growing literature of evolutionary medicine, a still secondary discipline to
medicine.Butthisisnotthewholestory.Forthosemedicswhohave“heardofit”,
therelevanceofanevolutionaryframeworkforthepracticeofmedicineisyettobe
demonstrated. Some have argued that in the consultation room, evolutionary
thinking may offer little more than a nice story to tell, but will not fix the broken
arm. Are they wrong? Arguably the answer is neither yes nor no, but rather that it
depends on thefieldof specialization,the amountof attention it has received from
evolutionary scholars and the type of practical implication that is sought
v
vi Preface
(communicationwiththepatient,rethinkingthehallmarksofadisease,findingnew
avenues in cancer therapy, etc.). Still, the question of the impact of evolutionary
thinking for practice and policy is one to be asked explicitly.
This book, a collection of 23 chapters, is using a number of unique features to
tackle the issues outlined above and in so doing, will enable medical doctors to
think evolutionarily: (1) It is organized by medical sub-fields: obstetrics, paedi-
atrics, nutrition, cardiology, oncology, immunity, geriatric, psychiatry and psy-
chology.Thosesub-fieldsthataremissingarenotomissionsfromtheEditors’part,
but rather the expression of a lack of evolutionary studies in some particular
medical specialties. For some, it has been either impossible (e.g. toxicology,
urology, gastroenterology, dermatology) or extremely difficult (e.g. cardiology) to
find contributors. (2) At least half of the contributors are M.D. (medical doctors).
Theotherhalfiscomposedofanthropologists,psychologistsandpopulationhealth
scientists. This leads to different “cultures” in the manner with which the evolu-
tionary approach is used to address medical issues, and we think it illustrates the
richness of the applicability of the evolutionary “toolbox” to serve health and
medicine.(3)Eachchaptercontainsalay-summaryandaglossary.Aspecialeffort
hasbeenmadetomakethecontentofthisbookaccessibletoalayreader,whether
in evolutionary biology or in medicine. (4) Each chapter contains a section
“Implications for policy and practice”. The authorshavebeen forcefully instructed
to provide an answer to that question, however difficult it might be, pointing out
whether or not such implications indeed had already emerged and/or the extent to
whichthey werestillspeculativeatthisstage.Theresult isacollection ofsections
thatcontainfar-reachingimplicationsforcontemporarybiomedicineand/orbrilliant
ideasinwaitingtobetested.Indeed, thepointoftheexercisewasnottoprovidea
definitive answer or account of an evolutionary approach to a particular medical
topic,butrathertochallengethecurrentstateofknowledgeandprovidethereader
with a new lens with which to think about health and medicine.
Although this book is first targeted at health practitioners and medical students,
its guiding purpose will serve anyone who is keen on finding out about “evolu-
tionarythinkinginmedicine”,whatitmeansandwhatithastooffertomainstream
biomedicine, be it patients, students, researchers or the general public.
July 2015 Alexandra Alvergne
Charlotte Faurie
Contents
1 Applying Evolutionary Thinking in Medicine: An Introduction . . . 1
Prof. Gillian R. Bentley, Ph.D.
Part I Obstetrics
2 “Foetal–Maternal Conflicts” and Adverse Outcomes
in Human Pregnancies. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Jimmy Espinoza, M.D., M.Sc., FACOG
3 Obstructed Labour: The Classic Obstetric Dilemma
and Beyond. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Emma Pomeroy, Ph.D., Prof. Jonathan C.K. Wells, Ph.D.
and Jay T. Stock, Ph.D.
4 Bottle Feeding: The Impact on Post-partum Depression, Birth
Spacing and Autism. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Gordon G. Gallup, Jr., Ph.D., Kristina N. Spaulding, Ph.D.
and Fatima Aboul-Seoud, B.A.
Part II Paediatrics
5 Sudden Infant Death Syndrome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Charlotte K. Russell, Ph.D., Lane E. Volpe, Ph.D.
and Prof. Helen L. Ball, Ph.D.
6 The Developmental Origins of Health and Disease:
Adaptation Reconsidered . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Ian J. Rickard, Ph.D.
7 Is Calculus Relevant to Survival? Managing the Evolutionary
Novelty of Modern Education. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
P. Douglas Sellers II, Ph.D., Karin Machluf, Ph.D.
and Prof. David F. Bjorklund, Ph.D.
vii
viii Contents
Part III Nutrition
8 Binge Eating, Disinhibition and Obesity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Prof. Stanley Ulijaszek, Ph.D. and Eleanor Bryant, Ph.D.
9 Evolutionary Aspects of the Dietary Omega-6/Omega-3
Fatty Acid Ratio: Medical Implications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Artemis P. Simopoulos, M.D.
Part IV Cardiology
10 Evolutionary Paradigms in Cardiology: The Case of Chronic
Heart Failure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Prof. emeritus Bernard Swynghedauw, M.D.
11 Evolutionary Imprints on Cardiovascular Physiology
and Pathophysiology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Robert S. Danziger, M.D.
Part V Oncology
12 Darwinian Strategies to Avoid the Evolution of Drug
Resistance During Cancer Treatment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167
John W. Pepper
13 Why Chemotherapy Does Not Work: Cancer Genome
Evolution and the Illusion of Oncogene Addiction . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
Aleksei Stepanenko, Ph.D. and Prof. Vadym Kavsan, Ph.D.
14 Evolution, Infection, and Cancer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
Prof. Paul W. Ewald, Ph.D. and Holly A. Swain Ewald, Ph.D.
Part VI Immunology
15 Microbes, Parasites and Immune Diseases. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
GabrieleSorci,Ph.D.,EmanuelGuivier,Ph.D.,CédricLippens,M.Sc.
and Bruno Faivre, Ph.D.
16 Evolutionary Principles and Host Defense. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Prof. Neil Greenspan, M.D., Ph.D.
17 Helminth Immunoregulation and Multiple Sclerosis Treatment . . . 241
Jorge Correale, M.D.
Part VII Geriatrics
18 Inflammaging and Its Role in Ageing and Age-Related
Diseases. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
Prof. Claudio Franceschi, Ph.D., Zelda Alice Franceschi, Ph.D.,
Paolo Garagnani, Ph.D. and Cristina Giuliani, Ph.D.
Contents ix
19 Dementias of the Alzheimer Type: Views Through the Lens
of Evolutionary Biology Suggest Amyloid-Driven Brain
Aging Is Balanced Against Host Defense. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
Prof. Caleb E. Finch, Ph.D. and George M. Martin, M.D.
Part VIII Psychology and Psychiatry
20 The Evolutionary Etiologies of Autism Spectrum
and Psychotic Affective Spectrum Disorders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 299
Prof. Bernard J. Crespi, Ph.D.
21 Why Are Humans Vulnerable to Alzheimer’s Disease? . . . . . . . . . 329
Daniel J. Glass, M.A. and Prof. Steven E. Arnold, M.D.
22 Evolutionary Approaches to Depression: Prospects
and Limitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 347
Somogy Varga, Ph.D.
23 The Ups and Downs of Placebos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 357
Pete C. Trimmer, Ph.D. and Prof. Alasdair I. Houston, Ph.D.
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 371
Editors and Contributors
About the Editors
Alexandra Alvergne is Associate Professor in Biocultural Anthropology at
Oxford University anda Fellow of Harris Manchester College inthe University of
Oxford. She trained as a human behavioural ecologist in France, focusing on the
evolutionary and ecological determinants of male reproductive and parental beha-
viour. She then held a Newton International Fellowship in the Anthropology
Department at University College London, where she researched how biological
and cultural evolutionary processes intersect in shaping diversity in health
decision-making, particularly contraceptive uptake. Now in post at Oxford
University,sherunsthecourse“Evolutionarythinkinginmedicine”forstudentsin
Human Sciences (BA), Archeology and Anthropology (BA) and Medical
Anthropology (M.Sc.), and she is developing research programmes linking evo-
lution, medicine and anthropology.
Crispin Jenkinson is Professor of Health Services Research, and Director of the
Health Services Research Unit (HSRU), at the Nuffield Department of Population
Health and a Senior Research Fellow of Harris Manchester College in the
University of Oxford. He graduated from Bedford College (University of London)
before coming to Oxford where he gained an M.Sc. in Psychology and then
undertook research on the psychological impact of long-term illness for a D.Phil.
Prior to joining the HSRU in 1992, he was a research fellow at Nuffield College,
Oxford. His main research interests include patient reported outcomes and health
status measurement, the evaluation of patient experiences of medical care, and
methodology. He has extensive experience in developing and validating outcome
measures and, in collaboration with others, has conducted randomized controlled
trials in which such instruments have been primary end-points.
Charlotte Faurie is a CNRS researcher in Human Evolutionary Biology at the
InstituteforEvolutionarySciencesinMontpellierUniversity,France.Shetrainedas
an evolutionary biologist, focusing on the evolution of the polymorphism of hand
xi
xii EditorsandContributors
preference in human populations. She then held a Marie Curie Post-doctoral
FellowshipintheUK,intheDepartmentofAnimalandPlantSciencesatSheffield
University, where she investigated the effects of competitive and cooperative
interactions among siblings on life-history traits. Back in France, she focused on
questionsaboutparentalinvestment,andhowsexualselectionshapestheevolution
of cooperation in humans. She currently leads research programmes on human
geneticandbehaviouraladaptations,andonthemedicalizationofbirth.Sheteaches
evolutionary biology and medicine in several master’s programmes in France. She
is also a student at the Medical School of Montpellier.
Contributors
Fatima Aboul-Seoud, B.A. Department of Psychology, University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, USA
Prof. Steven E. Arnold, M.D. Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General
Hospital, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
Prof.HelenL.Ball,Ph.D. Parent-InfantSleepLab,DepartmentofAnthropology,
Durham University, Durham, UK
Prof.GillianR.Bentley,Ph.D. DepartmentofAnthropology,DurhamUniversity,
Durham,UK
Prof. David F. Bjorklund, Ph.D. Department of Psychology, Florida Atlantic
University, Boca Raton, FL, USA
EleanorBryant,Ph.D. DivisionofPsychology,UniversityofBradford,Bradford,
UK
Jorge Correale, M.D. Dr. Raúl Carrea Institute for Neurological Research,
FLENI, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Prof.BernardJ.Crespi,Ph.D. DepartmentofBiologicalSciences,SimonFraser
University, Burnaby British Columbia, Canada
Robert S. Danziger, M.D. University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, USA
Jimmy Espinoza, M.D., M.Sc., FACOG Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine,
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston,
TX, USA; Texas Children’s Hospital Pavilion for Women, Houston, TX, USA
Prof. Paul W. Ewald, Ph.D. Department of Biology, University of Louisville,
Louisville, KY, USA
Bruno Faivre, Ph.D. Biogéosciences, CNRS UMR 6282, Université Bourgogne
Franche-Comté, Dijon, France
