Burn selection: how fire injury shaped human evolution
File(s)
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
The mastery of fire transformed human evolution through advantages spanning diet, behavior, physiology, and ecology. While these benefits are well established, here we highlight a previously overlooked cost — and selective pressure — unique to humans: high-temperature burn injury. Unlike other species, humans and their hominin ancestors have faced increased lifetime risk of burns, which we argue has driven genetic adaptation. Drawing on comparative genomic evidence across primates, we suggest that genes associated with burn injury response — relating to wound healing and inflammation — show signs of accelerated evolution in humans. We propose that recurrent exposure to burns acted as a selective force in our lineage, helping to explain both beneficial adaptations and paradoxical maladaptive responses to severe injury. By framing burns as an evolutionary pressure, the Burn Selection Hypothesis invites a re-evaluation of how fire shaped human biology and offers new perspectives for understanding both the evolutionary past and modern burn care.
Date Issued
2026-02-01
Date Acceptance
2026-01-14
Citation
BioEssays, 2026, 48 (2)
ISSN
0265-9247
Publisher
Wiley
Journal / Book Title
BioEssays
Volume
48
Issue
2
Copyright Statement
© 2026 The Author(s). BioEssays published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
License URL
Identifier
10.1002/bies.70109
Subjects
fire use
human evolution
inflammation
natural selection
thermal trauma
wound healing
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
e70109
Date Publish Online
2026-02-04