Hypoxia & altitude adaptations in Ethiopia highlands

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(Not specific to diving)

The genetic architecture of adaptations to high altitude in Ethiopia | Haldane's Sieve

 

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Uric acid, Ascorbic acid, Fructose effects:

Basically it turns out that uric acid triggers hibernation and fat storage
in many animals also. My take is that in Northern Europe and other
non-tropic places, fructose was mainly available only in the fall, when
fruits became ripe, and humans (and bears) stored fat for the winter.
[Heather Sweet at AAT]

Theodore E. Woodward Award: The Evolution of Obesity: Insights from the Mid- Miocene

All humans are double knockouts. Humans lack the ability to synthesize
vitamin C due to a mutation in L-gulono-lactone oxidase that occurred
during the late Eocene, and humans have higher serum uric acid levels due
to a mutation in uricase that occurred in the mid Miocene. In this paper we
review the hypothesis that these mutations have in common the induction of
oxidative stress that may have had prosurvival effects to enhance the
effects of fructose to increase fat stores. Fructose was the primary
nutrient in fruit which was the main staple of early primates, but this
food likely became less available during the global cooling that occurred
at the time of these mutations. However, in today's society, the intake of
fructose, primarily in the form of added sugars, has skyrocketed, while the
intake of natural fruits high in vitamin C has fallen. We suggest that it
is the interaction of these genetic changes with diet that is responsible
for the obesity epidemic today. Hence, we propose that Neel's thrifty gene
hypothesis is supported by these new insights into the mechanisms
regulating fructose metabolism. (cite at AAT)