The Solomon Islands Project: an introduction

The twin themes of the Solomon Islands Biomedical Project remain 1) the remarkable genetic heterogeneity of the groups in the Solomons; and 2) the differential responses to these groups to rapid modernization/acculturation over the past two decades of this long term study. This introduction summarizes the historical and ethnic relationships of the survey groups, their established genetic distances and their rankings with regard to acculturation at the times of their first survey, and changes occurring up to 1985-86. Relevant features of diet, life style, and epidemiology are described.