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Vitamin C--the primate fertility factor?

J Millar¹

¹Department of Physiology, Queen Mary & Westfield College, London.

Medical Hypotheses

|August 1, 1992

Summary

The loss of vitamin C synthesis in primates may be an evolutionary advantage. This trait could act as a fertility factor, promoting population regrowth by favoring younger, more fertile individuals during food scarcity.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary Biology
Nutritional Science
Primate Studies

Background:

Primates and humans cannot synthesize ascorbic acid (vitamin C).
This loss is typically considered an evolutionary accident without adaptive benefit.
Vitamin C plays a crucial role in various physiological processes.

Purpose of the Study:

To propose a novel evolutionary advantage for the loss of vitamin C biosynthesis in primates.
To investigate the potential role of vitamin C as a 'fertility factor' in primate populations.
To explore the relationship between vitamin C requirements, aging, and population dynamics.

Main Methods:

Theoretical analysis of evolutionary pressures.
Modeling of population dynamics under varying resource availability.
Review of existing literature on vitamin C metabolism and primate social structures.

Main Results:

The inability to synthesize vitamin C may confer a selective advantage.
Vitamin C requirement increases with age, leading to higher mortality in older individuals during scarcity.
This selective pressure favors younger, more fertile age groups, enhancing population recovery.

Conclusions:

The loss of vitamin C synthesis is hypothesized to be an adaptive trait, not an accident.
Vitamin C acts as a 'fertility factor' by modulating population age structure.
This mechanism facilitates rapid population regrowth following resource restoration.

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