TY - JOUR
T1 - Bone density and genomic analysis unfold cold adaptation mechanisms of ancient inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego
AU - Watanabe, Mikiko
AU - Risi, Renata
AU - Tafuri, Mary Anne
AU - Silvestri, Valentina
AU - D'Andrea, Daniel
AU - Raimondo, Domenico
AU - Rea, Sandra
AU - Di Vincenzo, Fabio
AU - Profico, Antonio
AU - Tuccinardi, Dario
AU - Sciuto, Rosa
AU - Basciani, Sabrina
AU - Mariani, Stefania
AU - Lubrano, Carla
AU - Cinti, Saverio
AU - Ottini, Laura
AU - Manzi, Giorgio
AU - Gnessi, Lucio
PY - 2021/12/2
Y1 - 2021/12/2
N2 - The Fuegians, ancient inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego, are an exemplary case of a cold-adapted population, since they were capable of living in extreme climatic conditions without any adequate clothing. However, the mechanisms of their extraordinary resistance to cold remain enigmatic. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) plays a crucial role in this kind of adaptation, besides having a protective role on the detrimental effect of low temperatures on bone structure. Skeletal remains of 12 adult Fuegians, collected in the second half of XIX century, were analyzed for bone mineral density and structure. We show that, despite the unfavorable climate, bone mineral density of Fuegians was close to that seen in modern humans living in temperate zones. Furthermore, we report significant differences between Fuegians and other cold-adapted populations in the frequency of the Homeobox protein Hox-C4 (HOXC4) rs190771160 variant, a gene involved in BAT differentiation, whose identified variant is predicted to upregulate HOXC4 expression. Greater BAT accumulation might therefore explain the Fuegians extreme cold-resistance and the protection against major cold-related damage. These results increase our understanding of how ecological challenges have been important drivers of human–environment interactions during Humankind history.
AB - The Fuegians, ancient inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego, are an exemplary case of a cold-adapted population, since they were capable of living in extreme climatic conditions without any adequate clothing. However, the mechanisms of their extraordinary resistance to cold remain enigmatic. Brown adipose tissue (BAT) plays a crucial role in this kind of adaptation, besides having a protective role on the detrimental effect of low temperatures on bone structure. Skeletal remains of 12 adult Fuegians, collected in the second half of XIX century, were analyzed for bone mineral density and structure. We show that, despite the unfavorable climate, bone mineral density of Fuegians was close to that seen in modern humans living in temperate zones. Furthermore, we report significant differences between Fuegians and other cold-adapted populations in the frequency of the Homeobox protein Hox-C4 (HOXC4) rs190771160 variant, a gene involved in BAT differentiation, whose identified variant is predicted to upregulate HOXC4 expression. Greater BAT accumulation might therefore explain the Fuegians extreme cold-resistance and the protection against major cold-related damage. These results increase our understanding of how ecological challenges have been important drivers of human–environment interactions during Humankind history.
U2 - 10.1038/s41598-021-02783-1
DO - 10.1038/s41598-021-02783-1
M3 - Article (Academic Journal)
C2 - 34857816
SN - 2045-2322
VL - 11
JO - Scientific Reports
JF - Scientific Reports
M1 - 23290
ER -