For many years, researchers around the world have been trying to unravel the secret of a Turkish family, whose members move in a very strange way - on their hands and feet.
Five siblings, aged 18 to 34, from a village in Hatay province in southern Turkey, have been inspiring scientists around the world to conduct research for the past 11 years. Members of this unique family walk on their arms and legs and can be upright for an extremely short period of time, while their knees and head remain bent.
An earlier theory has argued that the Ulas family's gait is similar to that of primates, suggesting that the family is an example of "reverse evolution." But now American scientists have come to the conclusion that the way siblings move is a consequence of a rare disease.
In a report published in PLoS One, the researchers say the way Turkish family members move around is not like the gait of primates. They argue that this is actually a consequence of a hereditary disorder that causes cerebellar hypoplasia, making it difficult to balance. To adapt to him, the family developed their own way of moving.
In 2005, British researchers also noted that the gait of siblings is different from that of primates. However, the Turkish evolutionary biologist Uner Tan previously claimed that siblings who have brain damage suffer from a condition called Uner Tan syndrome.
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He stated that people suffering from this syndrome walk with all four limbs and communicate in simple phrases. The scientist insisted that the syndrome, which he named after himself, is the result of a "reverse evolution" action.
The general public first became aware of siblings, whose parents move absolutely normally, in 2006, after the release of the documentary. According to Mail Online, two daughters and a son are constantly moving on their palms and legs, and the other two children sometimes manage to walk only on their feet.