From analysis of mitochondrial DNA extracted from a pinky finger bone, scientists have identified a new species of human ancestor. The 40,000-year-old bone fragment was found in a cave in the Altay mountains in Russia. The mitochondrial DNA shows that the person (they believe it was a child) it belonged to was neither Neanderthal nor Homo sapiens, but shared a common ancestor to both. University of Manchester geneticist Terry Brown co-authored an article released with the report in the journal Nature.
Researchers will try to extract nuclear DNA from the bone, which carries more information than mitochondrial DNA. Link
(image credit: Johannes Krause)
The new-human discovery implies that there was a wave of human migration out of Africa, the birthplace of humanity, that was completely unknown to science.
"We think Homo erectus"—an upright-walking but small-brained early human, or hominid—"was the first [hominid] to leave Africa two million years ago," Brown explained. After that the record went blank until about 500,000 years ago, until now.
"This hominid seems to have left about a million years ago, so it fills in a bit of a gap," he said.
Researchers will try to extract nuclear DNA from the bone, which carries more information than mitochondrial DNA. Link
(image credit: Johannes Krause)
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