Date: July 12, 2018
Source: PLOS
Almost all mammals avoid eating
chili peppers and other "hot" foods, because of the pain they induce.
But not the tree shrew, according to a study publishing July 12 in the
open-access journal PLOS Biology by
Yalan Han of the Kunming Institute of Zoology in China, and colleagues. The
researchers found that this close relative of primates is unaffected by the
active ingredient in chili peppers due to a subtle mutation in the receptor
that detects it. They speculate that this is an evolutionary adaptation to
enable tree shrews to cope with a peppery plant that makes up part of their
diet.
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