There
is a huichol myth which talks about the anthropogenic selection performed
by this indigenous nation with maize...
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...The Mother of Maize changed her dove
appearance to a human one; She introduced to the young man her 5 daughters,
who symbolize the five maize sacred colors: white, red, yellow, spotted
and blue. As the young man was hungry The Mother of Maize gave him a kettle
filled with tortillas and a pot filled with atole; he didn't belive that
those could satiate his hunger, but the tortillas and atole were renewed
magicaly, in a way that he couldn't finish them. The Mother of Maize asked
him to choose one of her daughters and he took the Girl of Blue Maize,
the most beauty and sacred of them all...
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This
legend talks about the influence of the anthocyanin
synthesis (chemical molecules that give its characteristic color to
maize grains) in maize selection. When it's said
that the Mother of Maize finds a huichol young man, takes him to her home,
offers him in marriage her daughters where each one of them represents
a color, it's indicating the main colors of maize
grains from where the selection will be perfromed, thus she has a White
Daughter, another Red, one Yellow, a Spotted and a Blue one, the huichol
chooses the Girl of Blue Maize who is the most sacred.
During
this narration it can be glimpsed the importance conceded to Transposable
Genetic Elements, as it's well known, a rising on aleurone anthocyanin
synthesis involves the action of Activator (Ac) element, so in this moment
the main character chooses the Girl of blue Maize, whose aleurone shows
a high rise in the production of this pigments, in this way he leaves the
other girls that have the element Ac off , spotted or red (Ds desactivator)
that implies the presence of pelargonidine on
aleurone with the consequent inhibition of 3'-flavonol-hydoxilase, it means
that only the Girl of Blue Maize had the genetic contents necessary to
satisfy the needs of the Huichol people (Blue tortillas are more delicious!).
Now
we suggest you to read Introduction to
aproach the research that made us conclude the data used to explain the
Huichol legend.
.
Huichol legend
Introduction Anhtocyanin
synthesis Copper
precipitates Redox system
Germplasm changes
Pith abscission Iltis
ear Locus Waxy
TGA gene Mutator
gene
Text Only Version
Versión en español
Laboratorio Químico
de Productos Naturales 1991
Tortilla: It's maize
dough rounded and flat, baked over a metal plate.
Atole: It's a beverage
made with maize dough, it can be flavored with
other foods.
The legend was taken
form the book "Mitos y arte huicoles", published by Sep/Setentas and written
by Peter T. Furst and Salomón Nahmad.
