Vinet Coetzee

Abstract Africa harbors the richest diversity of mitochondrial DNA lineages, reflecting its central role in human evolutionary history. Early studies of mtDNA variation provided the first genetic evidence for the African origin of modern humans. With complete mitochondrial genome sequencing, we can now reconstruct maternal lineages with high resolution, yet large parts of the continent remain underrepresented.

The global burden of child death, especially under the age of 5 mortality rate (U5MR), remains a challenge, and the highest U5MR was found in sub-Saharan African countries between 1990 and 2015. If this trend continues, 53% of the children under the age of 5 years will die in the next 15 years in these countries.1x1You, D., Hug, L., Ejdemyr, S., Idele, P., Hogan, D., Mathers, C. et al.

Previous work showed high agreement in facial attractiveness preferences within and across cultures. The aims of the current study were twofold. First, we tested cross-cultural agreement in the attractiveness judgements of White Scottish and Black South African students for own- and other-ethnicity faces.