Homo floresiensis
A human-like species who lived until 18,000 years ago in the company of giant Komodo lizards and now-extinct pygmy elephants on the isolated island of Flores in Indonesia. Homo floresiensis was only one meter (3 feet) tall and had a brain one-third the size of that of modern humans. Nicknamed hobbits, these people lived on this isolated island long after Homo sapiens had migrated through the South Pacific region. Homo erectus, our closest relative, lived on the nearby island of Java as long as 1.6 million years ago, suggesting that the Flores hominins were their descendants.
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- Homo sapiens
The primate species of mammal to which modern humans belong. Homo sapiens is Latin for knowing man or wise man.
- Homo-
Prefix meaning same, as in homology (similarity in DNA or protein sequences between individuals or between species) and homosexual (a person who is sexually attracted to persons of the same sex). The opposite of homo- is hetero-.
- Homocysteine
An amino acid that is produced by the human body, usually as a byproduct of consuming meat. Homocysteine is normally converted into other amino acids. An abnormal accumulation of homocysteine, which can be measured in the blood, can be a marker for the development of heart disease. Elevated levels of homocysteine in the blood appear […]
- Homocystinuria
A genetic disease that is due to an enzyme deficiency that permits a buildup of the amino acid homocysteine. Progressive mental retardation is common, but does not always occur, in untreated cases of homocystinuria. The finding of vascular disease and premature arteriosclerosis in persons with homocystinuria led to the theory that homocysteine may be a […]
- Homogentisate 1,2-dioxygenase
The enzyme encoded in the HGD gene. Mutation of HGD \causes the genetic disease alkaptonuria. Homogentisate 1,2-dioxygenase is also called homogentisate oxidase.