PNI: sexual attraction

[Jim Kohl]

In article <Pine.SOL.3.91.960229023409.26374B-100000 at hamlet.uncg.edu>, 
s_bentz at hamlet.uncg.edu says...
>
>Hmmm, if I remember correctly, I saw an article in Discover magazine (I 
>know, I know... it's not the most prestigious journal out there...) 
about 
>this fellow by the name of Claus Wedekind.  Seems that Wedekind has gone 
>about demonstrating that in mammals (yes, humans too!), females prefer 
>mates with MHC (Major Histocompatibility Complex, or some such 
>monstrosity of a name).  This is kinda like an immune system 
>"fingerprint", in that no two people or mice or whatever have the same 
>one(s).  I do little justice to the whole picture painted by Wedekind.  
>Anyway, I hope even the faintest beam of light has been thus cast on the 
>issue...

Carol Ober (University of Chicago) and her colleagues were the first 
group I know of to report evidence that humans mate for genetic 
diversity. She was mentioned in the Discover article in which Wedekind is 
credited for this idea. Misdirected credited may be due to the fact that, 
Carol has, to my knowledge, not yet published findings she presented in 
October 1993. A German group has published several works that help to 
elaborate on the human "phenomena" of mating for genetic diversity--a 
phenomena readily explained in other species via 
olfactory-genetic-neuronal-hormonal-behavioral reciprocity.


Jim Kohl