The underlying molecular evolution of high-altitude adaptation has been explored and understood fairly recently. Depending on the geographical and environmental pressures, high-altitude adaptation involves different genetic patterns, some of which have evolved quite recently. For example, Tibetan adaptations became prevalent in the past 3,000 years, a rapid example of recent human evolution. At the turn of the 21st century, it was reported that the genetic make-up of the respiratory components of the Tibetan and the Ethiopian populations are significantly different.
