How Studying Other Animals Helps Us Understand Ourselves

There is so much we can learn about ourselves from the study of various animals. How much are we the same as other creatures? How much are we different? And why? Four stories by Dov Michaeli, M.D. are featured in this issue. They shed some light on the answers to those questions.

Wise people have been pondering the answer to the question "What Makes Humans Different from the Rest of the Animals?" since at least the 5th Century BC. Is it our intelligence? No, we now know other animals are remarkably intelligent. Is it our ability to communicate? Again, no. Whales, dolphins, birds, and apes all communicate via quite complex languages. Even empathy doesn't turn out to be a differentiator. Think of a herd of elephants mourning together over the loss of one mother's baby. This story explores two factors that have turned out to be unique to humans. One is behavioral - the ability to plan over the long term. The other is biochemical - a mutation that led to us having a unique polysaccharide on the surface of our cells. Click here to read this fascinating story.

A remarkable study of the genomics and behavior of honeybees has revealed important insights into human behavior and metabolism. We have known for a long time that, in general, obesity is linked to a shorter lifespan. It is also known that the higher the reproductive capacity of a species, the shorter its lifespan. But these relationships are turned upside down in certain bees. What can we learn from studying the genetics of this seeming aberration that could be applied to human beings? Further, honeybee society is highly organized into a caste system controlled by chemicals, including royal jelly. Are there implications for human societies that we should be prepared for? Again, fascinating stuff. READ MORE HERE.

Dog behavior has been shaped by millennia of contact with humans. So it shouldn't surprise us that they have personality traits similar but not identical to our own. As a result of this physical and social evolution, dogs, more than any other species, have acquired the ability to understand and communicate with humans. They are uniquely attuned to our behaviors. READ THIS STORY to learn what science has to say about the behaviors of man's best friend.

The hairy penis occurs in chimpanzees and male mammals of other lower species. How it disappeared during the evolution of man is a fascinating story. READ MORE.

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More intriguing health-related stories from around the web

• Prince Harry and Ed Sheeran teamed up to create a video to raise awareness for World Mental Health Day. Their message: Everyone needs to "look out for anybody that might be suffering in silence".
• In the "no surprise there" category, an Opinion piece in the October 1 issue of JAMA concludes that "an increasing number of studies have provided rigorous evidence that Medicaid expansion has been associated with improved health of low-income US residents."
• William Bestermann, a board-certified internist specializing in preventive cardiology writes: "Surgery and angioplasty don't prevent heart attacks in stable patients. We already know how to do that with medical management. Why aren't we doing it?" READ MORE
• There is continued progress in the fight against the deadly Ebola virus. The FDA has just approved a rapid diagnostic test for the detection of the virus. Called the OraQuick Ebola Rapid Antigen Test, it allows a presumptive diagnosis that must be confirmed afterward. 
• A recent study published in the September 19, 2019, New England Journal of Medicine is great news for folks with risk factors for heart disease. A "polypill" that combines 4 different treatments (link to abstract) for high blood pressure and elevated LDL cholesterol levels led to "greater reductions in systolic blood pressure and LDL cholesterol level[s] than were observed with usual care in a socio-economically vulnerable minority population." It's so much easier to take one pill instead of four"

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DON'T FORGET TO VISIT THE DOCTOR WEIGHS IN to read more of our stories about innovations in health and healthcare.

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