Estonian Biocentre, Institute of Genomics, University of Tartu, Tartu, Tartumaa, Estonia.
Laboratoire Évolution and Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR5174), Université de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, CNRS, IRD, UPS, Toulouse, France.
PLoS One. 2021 Jul 21;16(7):e0253921. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0253921. eCollection 2021.
Altitude is one of the most demanding environmental pressures for human populations. Highlanders from Asia, America and Africa have been shown to exhibit different biological adaptations, but Oceanian populations remain understudied [Woolcock et al., 1972; Cotes et al., 1974; Senn et al., 2010]. We tested the hypothesis that highlanders phenotypically differ from lowlanders in Papua New Guinea, as a result of inhabiting the highest mountains in Oceania for at least 20,000 years.
We collected data for 13 different phenotypes related to altitude for 162 Papua New Guineans living at high altitude (Mont Wilhelm, 2,300-2,700 m above sea level (a.s.l.) and low altitude (Daru, <100m a.s.l.). Multilinear regressions were performed to detect differences between highlanders and lowlanders for phenotypic measurements related to body proportions, pulmonary function, and the circulatory system.
Six phenotypes were significantly different between Papua New Guinean highlanders and lowlanders. Highlanders show shorter height (p-value = 0.001), smaller waist circumference (p-value = 0.002), larger Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) (p-value = 0.008), larger maximal (p-value = 3.20e -4) and minimal chest depth (p-value = 2.37e -5) and higher haemoglobin concentration (p-value = 3.36e -4).
Our study reports specific phenotypes in Papua New Guinean highlanders potentially related to altitude adaptation. Similar to other human groups adapted to high altitude, the evolutionary history of Papua New Guineans appears to have also followed an adaptive biological strategy for altitude.
海拔是对人类最具挑战性的环境压力之一。来自亚洲、美洲和非洲的高原人群表现出不同的生物适应性，但对大洋洲人群的研究仍然较少[Woolcock 等人，1972 年；Cotes 等人，1974 年；Senn 等人，2010 年]。我们检验了这样一个假设，即由于居住在大洋洲最高的山脉中至少 20000 年，巴布亚新几内亚的高原人群在表型上与低地人群不同。
我们收集了 162 名生活在高海拔（海拔 2300-2700 米的蒙威尔峰）和低海拔（海拔<100 米的达鲁）的巴布亚新几内亚人 13 种与海拔相关的不同表型的数据。进行多元线性回归以检测与身体比例、肺功能和循环系统相关的表型测量值在高海拔和低海拔人群之间的差异。
巴布亚新几内亚高原人群和低地人群之间有 6 种表型存在显著差异。高原人群的身高更矮（p 值=0.001），腰围更小（p 值=0.002），用力肺活量（FVC）更大（p 值=0.008），最大和最小胸围更深（p 值分别为 3.20e-4 和 2.37e-5），血红蛋白浓度更高（p 值=3.36e-4）。
我们的研究报告了巴布亚新几内亚高原人群中潜在与海拔适应相关的特定表型。与其他适应高海拔的人类群体相似，巴布亚新几内亚人的进化历史似乎也遵循了一种适应高海拔的生物策略。
