João C. Teixeira

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that no simple general relationship exists between neutral genetic diversity and the risk of species extinction, and instead, a better understanding of the properties of functional genetic diversity, demographic history, and ecological relationships is necessary for developing and implementing effective conservation genetic strategies.

TL;DR: The Non-central Deviation (NCD) is described, a simple yet powerful statistic to detect long-term balancing selection (LTBS) that quantifies how close frequencies are to expectations under LTBS, and provides the basis for a neutrality test.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that no simple general relationship exists between neutral genetic diversity and the risk of species extinction, and a better understanding of the properties of functional genetic diversity, demographic history, and ecological relationships is necessary for developing and implementing effective conservation genetic strategies.

TL;DR: It is argued that balancing selection must be considered an important selective force in human evolution.

TL;DR: Detailed peptide‐binding affinities between 438 HLA Class I and Class II proteins and complete proteomes of seven pandemic human viruses are reported and possible signatures of natural selection on HLA promiscuous alleles due to past pathogenic infections are discussed.