Human Face Mites Evolved Alongside Humans Say Scientists

Posted on December 17, 2015

Face mites have always been with humans and evolved as we evolved. This is according to findings from a new study led by scientists at Bowdoin and the California Academy of Sciences. A magnified image of the face mite Demodex folliculorum is pictured above. The tiny arachnids inhabit human hair follicles. They are linked to some skin and eye disorders including rosacea and blepharitis.

The study finds that the mites predate humans but then evolved along with us. It found that some mite populations are better able to survive and reproduce on hosts from certain geographic regions. The study study found that, in some cases, African Americans who had been living in the US for generations still hosted African mites.

Dr. Michelle Trautwein, Academy curator of entomology and senior author of the new findings, says they discovered that people from different parts of the world host different mite lineages. Trautwein says in a statement, "The continent where a person's ancestry originated tended to predict the types of mites on their faces. We found that mite lineages can persist in hosts for generations. Even if you move to a faraway region, your mites stick with you."

Trautwein also says, "It's shocking that we're only just discovering how deeply our histories are shared with the mites on our bodies. They aren't just bugs on our faces, they are storytellers. Mites tell us about our own ancient history--it's a complex story, and we've only just scratched the surface."

A research paper on the face mite study was published here in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

MITES