Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34857816›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2021

Bone density and genomic analysis unfold cold adaptation mechanisms of ancient inhabitants of Tierra del Fuego.

Mikiko Watanabe, Renata Risi, Mary Anne Tafuri, Valentina Silvestri, Daniel D'Andrea, Domenico Raimondo, Sandra Rea, Fabio Di Vincenzo, Antonio Profico, Dario Tuccinardi and 8 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.8field-weighted citation impact, top 28% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 11 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Observational
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

18 authors at 6 institutions in 2 countries.

Mikiko Watanabe *Section of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy. mikiko.watanabe@uniroma1.it.
Renata Risi *Section of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Mary Anne TafuriDepartment of Environmental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Valentina SilvestriDepartment of Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Daniel D'AndreaMRC Centre for Neuropsychiatric Genetics and Genomics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, UK.
Domenico RaimondoDepartment of Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Sandra ReaNuclear Medicine Unit, IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy.
Fabio Di VincenzoNatural History Museum-University of Florence, Florence, Italy.
Antonio ProficoDepartment of Environmental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Dario TuccinardiUnit of Endocrinology and Diabetes, Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome, 00128, Rome, Italy.
Rosa SciutoNuclear Medicine Unit, IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy.
Sabrina BascianiSection of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Stefania MarianiSection of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Carla LubranoSection of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Saverio CintiCenter of Obesity, Marche Polytechnic University, Ancona, Italy.
Laura OttiniDepartment of Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Giorgio Manzi *Department of Environmental Biology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Lucio Gnessi *Section of Medical Pathophysiology, Food Science and Endocrinology, Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy. lucio.gnessi@uniroma1.it.
Sapienza University of Rome · ITIstituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico · ITCardiff University · GBMarche Polytechnic University · ITUniversità Campus Bio-Medico · ITUniversity of Florence · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

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.

Indexed as

Cold TemperatureEcologyGene-Environment InteractionGenomicsAcclimatizationAdaptation, PhysiologicalAdipose Tissue, BrownBody RemainsBone DensityCell DifferentiationChileGene ExpressionGenetic VariationHomeodomain ProteinsHumansUp-RegulationHomeodomain ProteinsHOXC4 protein, human

Identifiers

PMID34857816
PMCPMC8639971
OpenAlexW3166820639

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.