Hypoxia is the main stress that all animals, including humans, encounter at high altitudes.
Heart and lung disease can cause physiological changes that are similar to those observed at high altitude. Hence, both basic and medical researchers from several fields study the biological responses to hypoxia and more than 5,900 articles have appeared on the subject in the past five years. In general, animals respond to hypoxic stress either by reducing their metabolism, and thereby reducing their oxygen demand, or by improving the body's ability to transport oxygen to increase oxygen supply. In addition, there may be genetic adaptations that occur in populations of humans and animals exposed to hypoxia for several generations. This symposium will bring together scientists from the many areas that study hypoxia, including medical researchers, zoologists and evolutionary biologists.