Records & People

Sherpas Carry a Gene Variant No Other Human Should Have — It Came From an Extinct Species

Scientists studying why Sherpa guides thrive above 8,000 metres without extra oxygen found the answer partly written by Denisovans, an extinct human…

By Laxman Rawal · Jul 29, 2026

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At Everest Base Camp, 5,300 metres up, most human bodies are quietly struggling — hemoglobin thickening dangerously, muscles burning fuel wastefully, energy stores draining fast. Sherpa guides working the same slope, carrying the same loads, are not. Two…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

What this means for trekkers

Genetics is not a training plan None of this shortens the acclimatisation a foreign trekker needs. It does explain why your Sherpa guide can hold a conversation while you are catching your breath on the same hill — and why every one of our itineraries is…

Travel Himalaya Nepal · News

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