Study
Altitude adaptation in Tibetans caused by introgression of Denisovan-like DNA
Huerta-Sánchez, Emilia; Jin, Xin; Asan; Bianba, Zhuoma; Peter, Benjamin M.; Vinckenbosch, Nicolas; Nielsen, Rasmus
Nature, 2014
Compared the Tibetan EPAS1 haplotype against archaic hominin genomes and modern human populations worldwide, testing whether its unusual sequence pattern was consistent with introgression.
- Studied in
- Homo sapiens
- Sample size
- Tibetan genomes compared against archaic and modern reference genomes
The Tibetan EPAS1 haplotype closely matches the Denisovan sequence and is essentially absent from other modern populations, indicating it entered modern humans by interbreeding with an archaic group and was then favoured by selection.
What it means
The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.
How the authors put it
The adaptation was acquired rather than originated: an existing variant from another hominin population was picked up and selected for.
How NatureHQ reads it
The co-option theme again, now at the level of whole populations. The variant did not arise in Tibetans; it was inherited from a different human lineage and proved useful. It is the human counterpart to the antifreeze that used to be a digestive enzyme.
- Introgression is inferred from sequence pattern; the Denisovan genome available is from a single individual far from Tibet.
- That the variant is beneficial at altitude rests on the association work rather than on experiment.
What this study is used for on NatureHQ
One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.
Published by: Nature PortfolioPublished in a Nature Portfolio journal.
Checked against Crossref on 2026-09-28, and they agree on the title, the authors and the year.
NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-09-03.