Ancient DNA shows earliest European genomes weathered the Ice Age

New research also shines new light on Neanderthal interbreeding and a mystery human lineage

DNA from 36,000 year old skull



The new study shows that the mixing of HSN and HSS may have occurred around a 54,000 years ago, before the Eurasian population began to separate. This means that, even today, anyone with a Eurasian ancestry - from Chinese to Scandinavian and North American - has a small element of Neanderthal DNA. Scientists now believe Eurasians separated into at least 3 populations earlier than 36,000 years ago: Western Eurasians, East Asians and a mystery third lineage, all of whose descendants would develop the unique features of most non-African peoples. It would seem that for 30,000 years the ice sheets came and went, at one point covering two-thirds of Europe. Old cultures died and new ones emerged - such as the Aurignacian and the Grevettian - over thousands of years, and the hunter-gatherer populations ebbed and flowed. But we now know that no new sets of genes are coming in: these changes in survival and cultural kit are overlaid on the same biological background.

"That there was continuity from the earliest Upper Palaeolithic to the Mesolithic, across a major glaciation, is a great insight into the evolutionary processes underlying human success," said co-author Dr Marta Mirazón Lahr, from Cambridge's Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies (LCHES).

TextLead author and Lundbeck Foundation Professor Eske Willerslev added: "This work reveals the complex web of population relationships in the past, generating for the first time a firm framework with which to explore how humans responded to climate change, encounters with other populations, and the dynamic landscapes of the ice age."

New Cambridge DNA study

Interesting!I wonder where the Native Americans fit in?

originally posted by: Sunwolf
Interesting!I wonder where the Native Americans fit in?

I'll take that one,
Some ameridians and this gentleman share common ancestors and are more like each other than they are each like east eurasians. So some time after the basal eurasian population mixed with
Neanderthal, ameridians split off and went their way. Then some time later then the remaining eurasians split into east and west and east Asians.

a reply to: Hanslune
This is fascinating.

I was surprised to watch a 'Horizon' programme on the tv where one of our leading professors told us last week that the neanderthal died out and we were left. He made no mention of the interbreeding between the two species or any of the information you give us from the Cambridge report. The programme was not a repeat I don't think ,so it seems either there is division within the academics or some are not so up to date as should be making programmes telling the public about their ancestory.

The Neanderthal in me thanks the OP for posting an article reaffirming the gene pool. Maybe I'll hunt and gather today to celebrate. Ooga booga and a raised beer to you.

originally posted by: Shiloh7
a reply to: Hanslune
This is fascinating.

I was surprised to watch a 'Horizon' programme on the tv where one of our leading professors told us last week that the neanderthal died out and we were left. He made no mention of the interbreeding between the two species or any of the information you give us from the Cambridge report. The programme was not a repeat I don't think ,so it seems either there is division within the academics or some are not so up to date as should be making programmes telling the public about their ancestory.

Depends on how old that program is. The inter mixture of HSN and HSS was long theorized but only proved very recently.

originally posted by: Shiloh7
a reply to: Hanslune
This is fascinating.

I was surprised to watch a 'Horizon' programme on the tv where one of our leading professors told us last week that the neanderthal died out and we were left. He made no mention of the interbreeding between the two species or any of the information you give us from the Cambridge report. The programme was not a repeat I don't think ,so it seems either there is division within the academics or some are not so up to date as should be making programmes telling the public about their ancestory.

Graham Hancock spoke about the interbreeding between them. If I remember correctly he said Red haired people get the red hair from the neanderthal. It was about a year ago I heard him discussing this. If I can remember where I read it I'll link to it.

originally posted by: VoidHawk

Graham Hancock spoke about the interbreeding between them. If I remember correctly he said Red haired people get the red hair from the neanderthal. It was about a year ago I heard him discussing this. If I can remember where I read it I'll link to it.

Here is the original scientific paper on 'red hair'

originally posted by: Hanslune

originally posted by: VoidHawk

Graham Hancock spoke about the interbreeding between them. If I remember correctly he said Red haired people get the red hair from the neanderthal. It was about a year ago I heard him discussing this. If I can remember where I read it I'll link to it.

Here is the original scientific paper on 'red hair'

Thanks.

a reply to: VoidHawk

Actually Neanderthal red hair is via a different gene than that of modern humans. So nope red hair =/= neanderthalian linage proof.

Culotta, Elizabeth (26 October 2007). "Ancient DNA Reveals Neandertals With Red Hair, Fair Complexions". Science 318 (5850): 546–7. doi:10.1126/science.318.5850.546.

if kostenki is the same as pavlov that means somewhere in between the two might be found the gravettian "capital" which might date quite late. aurignacian communities thrived POST glacially along the lower and middle danube so says [cambridge ancient histories]

what happens when a human does the nasty with a sasquatch? Or visa versa? Neaderthals?

To me all this proves is that humans have been around for a long time.

It however does not solve the missing link. Just begs more questions. Like how close were sasquatch to humans before either disease or us pushed them into the bush.

So many mysteries so little time.

Nice find, OP - interesting stuff

a reply to: AnuTyr

What "missing link"? There is no "missing link"

originally posted by: AnuTyr
what happens when a human does the nasty with a sasquatch?

The same thing that happens we we do it with laeprauchans, fairies and Grey Aliens

Or visa versa? Neaderthals?

When Homo Sapiens mated with Neanderthal it led to Homo Sapiens Sapiens. I.E. us though technically, people who have no HNS genes like the Khoi-San people of Subsaharan Africa are also HSS.

To me all this proves is that humans have been around for a long time.

They have. the earliest H. Sapiens remains are approximately 160,000 years old and were found in Ethiopia so yes, we've been around a long time.

It however does not solve the missing link.

Solving the missing link is like solving green blood in vulcans. Both are anachronistic myths though with the new Star Trek movies Vulcans are more realistic. Tere is no such thing as a missing link.

Just begs more questions. Like how close were sasquatch to humans before either disease or us pushed them into the bush.

To answer that you would have to show evidence that Sasquatch existed and then demonstrate that we share a recent enough common ancestry to be capable of breeding with them were they to be determined to be a real entity. Lots of ifs and maybes there not a lot of facts.

So many mysteries so little time.

The world is your oyster, get in the Mystery Machine grab some Scooby Snacks and get cracking

European gnomes in the ice age? There are fossils?


Oh. Never mind.

a reply to: Phage

Didn't you read? The gnomes were mating with Bigfoot.