Sex between Neanderthals and modern humans rewrite our history – Hypertext

The Altai reflects a lost world between Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan. In these golden mountains and described by yellow and tan colors acquires the mountains in autumn, you can find turquoise rivers and unique species like the snow leopard. But here the first evidence of the secret meetings between Neanderthal and modern humans also hiding. Scientists thought to date outside Africa matings had occurred about 47,000 and 65,000 years ago. However, a study published in Nature shows that the crossing occurred 100,000 years ago in Siberia, tens of thousands of years earlier than previously thought. “is the first genetic evidence proves that the human species left Africa before “

the relationship between modern humans and Neanderthals Altai prove that the human race came before the African continent. “This is the first genetic evidence,” he told Hypertext Sergi Castilian , adding that “there are some fossils outside Africa that may have more than 100,000 years.” The researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and codirector of the paper argues that the study “shows that modern humans left Africa more than once and found the Neanderthals many times.” These early migrations, in the words of Castilian, “may not be successful for thousands of years before our ancestors migrated from Africa 50,000 to 65,000 years ago and settled throughout the world.”

Humans came before Africa

According to findings published in Nature , encounters between Neanderthals and modern humans occurred several times “certainly for at least 50,000 years,” says the scientist. But what evidence shows these crosses and mating? Analysis of the genome of a Neanderthal and Denisova hominid Altai Mountains suggest that modern humans had migrated out of Africa more than 100,000 years ago. According to comments to Hypertext Luis Sáenz de Miera , a professor of genetics at the University of León, “the populations of modern humans who were the ones that went extinct genes of Neanderthals Altai “. By comparing the DNA of these ancient hominids with two human genomes today, Castilian team discovered the first “genetic fingerprint” of the first meetings between Neanderthals and modern humans. The population of humans modern genetically mixed with Neanderthals Altai before dying

the group also sequenced chromosome 21 two Neanderthal found in the Asturian cave the Sidrón and Croatia. The choice of these remains was not accidental, because as Sergi Castilian argues, “it is possible to obtain DNA from them and representing either European Neanderthals.” Genetic evidence of mating occurred in Siberia, however, he has left no trace in Denisovans Altai or European Neanderthals. This means, according to researcher Max Planck Institute, “perhaps came as European Neanderthals migrated to Asia around 100,000-120,000 years.”

diagram explaining how the crossing could occur between Altai Neanderthals and modern humans. Photo courtesy of the National Center for Genome Analysis (CNAG-CRG) and Pompeu Fabra University.

As Saenz de Miera points out, the paper develops “complex” mathematical and probability models to test if DNA data fit the hypothesis. The results show that modern humans who are genetically mixed with Altai Neanderthals must have come from a population that left the African continent before migrating ancestors of Europeans and Asians today . In addition to DNA analysis, the current populations include “genetic fingerprints” of meetings between Neanderthals and modern humans. These “fingerprints” represent, in the words of Castilian, that “humans today have between 1 and 3% of the Neanderthal genome.” An ancient genetic material that could be behind some negative effects such as thrombosis or the appearance of stomach disorders, depression, addictions or urinary disorders. This population of modern humans out of Africa tens of thousands of years before our ancestors

working in Nature , therefore, has managed to find the first evidence of the genetic contribution of modern humans towards Neanderthals . The authors of the study, which also involved scientists from the Universitat Pompeu Fabra of Barcelona, ​​also speculate about where this might occur first encounters 100,000 years ago. Modern human population could have interbred with Neanderthals in southwest Asia, southern Arabia or in the region near the Persian Gulf. Three areas where Neanderthals may have settled early, according to the scientific evidence available today. This finding, according to Carles Lalueza-Fox , director of the Laboratory of Paleogenomics the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (CSIC-UPF), “represents another step in the demolition of the old paradigm of human evolution. Now we know there have been multiple crosses between modern humans and archaic hominids that have helped to accelerate the adaptation of these populations. ” And it is that even though this population of modern humans became extinct, DNA sequencing allows us to open a window to the past and rewrite an important part of our evolutionary history.