genetics and the rat people of Pakistan
August 2, 2006The legend goes like this: when infertile women came to a local shrine and asked that they be blessed with children, the wish might be granted. However, the first child will be a ‘chua’, or what is referred to by residents as a ‘rat person’ due to the skinny face, sloping forehead and protruding teeth. This firstborn must be given to the shrine or else the woman will only produce chuas. These facial characteristics are also indicative of microcephaly.
Some said that priests might be guilty of retarding the growth of otherwise healthy babies by attaching clamps on their heads. Experts disputed this, saying that such deformities cannot be caused by human tampering. They pointed out that a certain percentage of Pakistanis living in Britain also suffered from this condition.
Then a Leeds geneticist stepped in, resulting in an encouraging future for families who carry the genetic mutation.
