Human adaptation to arsenic in Andean populations of the Atacama Desert.
Mario ApataBernado ArriazaElena LlopMauricio MoragaPublished in: American journal of physical anthropology (2017)
The higher frequency of protective variants in both northern Chilean populations indicates a long exposure to naturally arsenic-contaminated water sources. Our data suggest that a high arsenic metabolization capacity has been selected as an adaptive mechanism in these populations in order to survive in an arsenic-laden environment.