Mutation of the CCR5 coreceptor may have enabled people to survive various European plagues during the Middle Ages.

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Studies have shown that individuals who carry a mutated version of the CCR5 gene are resistant to HIV infection and may have also been less susceptible to diseases like the bubonic plague that occurred during the Middle Ages. This mutation appears to have been more prevalent in populations of northern and western Europe, possibly due to selective pressure from these historic plagues.

Mutation of the CCR5 Coreceptor May Have Enabled People to Survive