Ancient Teeth Hint at Canoodling Between Early Human Relatives
Researchers found a Denisovan-linked protein variant in six H. erectus teeth, offering the first molecular evidence of mixing among ancient human groups.
- Researchers led by palaeogeneticist Qiaomei Fu at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing analyzed enamel proteins from six H. erectus teeth recovered across China, all dating to around 400,000 years ago.
- The analysis revealed two key protein mutations, including one unique to East Asian populations of the species that differentiates them from other human relatives, according to findings published in Nature.
- A second mutation appears in Denisovans, an extinct cousin group, indicating that East Asian members of the species likely passed the variant through interbreeding with this population.
- Anthropologist John Hawks at the University of Wisconsin-Madison called the consistency of results across specimens 'very cool,' while researchers noted the findings help clarify murky evolutionary relationships.
- Study author Fu emphasized that researchers need more DNA and fossil material to fully determine how this predecessor relates to other humans, sharpening the evolutionary record.
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400,000-Year-Old Tooth in China Reveals Link Between Homo erectus, Denisovans and Modern Humans
Homo erectus skull. Credit: Emőke Dénes / CC BY-SA 4.0 Ancient proteins extracted from a 400,000-year-old tooth have connected three chapters of human prehistory in a single study. Researchers identified molecular evidence linking Homo erectus in China to the Denisovans and, through them, to modern humans living today. The team analyzed enamel proteins from six Homo erectus teeth recovered from three Chinese sites: Zhoukoudian in northern China,…
It is an important discovery not only for what it says about Homo erectus but also because it confirms how much human evolution resembles less and less an ordered tree and more and more to a network of molecular relatives, intersections and survivals
The work reveals genetic clues about the human ancestor Homo erectus.The researchers extracted ancient proteins from fossilized tooth enamel.
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