STATUE: This skull from Jebel Irhoud in Morocco is often referred to as a modern human ancestor. The meaning of that lineage is discussed and unraveled in a new study by Bergstrom and … view Lake
Credit: Chris Stringer
Experts from the Natural History Museum, the Francis Crick Institute and the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History Jena have joined forces to unravel the different meanings of ancestry in the evolution of our species of Homo sapiens.
Most of us are fascinated by our lineage, and by extension the lineage of the human species. We regularly see headlines such as ‘New Human Ancestor Discovered’ or ‘New Fossil Changes Everything We Thought About Our Ancestors’, and yet the meanings of words like ancestor and lineage are rarely discussed in detail. In the new paper, published in Nature, experts discuss our current understanding of how modern human ancestors around the world can be traced back to the distant past, and which ancestors it went through on our journey back in time.
Co-author-researcher Prof. Chris Stringer of the Natural History Museum said: “Some of our ancestors have lived in groups or populations that can be identified in the fossil record, while very little will be known about others. Over the next ten years. recognition of our complex origins should expand the geographic focus of paleoanthropological fieldwork to regions previously considered peripheral to our evolution, such as Central and West Africa, the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. ”
The research identified three main stages in our lineage that are surrounded by big questions and will be boundaries in the coming research. From the global expansion of modern humans about 40-60,000 years ago and the last known contacts with archaic groups such as the Neanderthals and Denisovans, to an African origin of modern human diversity about 60-300,000 years ago, and finally the complex separation of modern human ancestors of archaic human groups about 300,000 to 1 million years ago.
The scientists argue that no specific time point can be currently identified when modern human ancestry was limited to a limited place of birth, and that the known patterns of the first appearance of anatomical or behavioral features often used to define Homo sapiens fit into a series of evolutionary histories.
Co-author Pontus Skoglund of the Francis Crick Institute said, “Contrary to popular belief, the genetic or fossil records have not yet revealed a defined time and place for the origin of our species. Such a time, when the majority of our ancestry was found in a small geographic region, and the traits we associate with our species have appeared, but may not have existed. For now, it would be helpful to move away from the idea of a single time and place of origin. “
“As a result, major emerging questions concern the mechanisms that powered and sustained this human patchwork quilt, with all its various ancestral threads, in time and space,” said study co-author Eleanor Scerri of the Pan-African Evolution Research. Group of the Max Planck Institute. for the science of human history. “Understanding the relationship between broken habitats and shifting human niches will undoubtedly play a key role in unraveling these questions by clarifying which demographic patterns best fit the genetic and paleoanthropological data.”
The success of direct genetic analyzes so far underscores the importance of a broader, ancient genetic record. This requires continuous technological advancements in ancient DNA (aDNA) retrieval, biomolecular screening of fragmentary fossils to find unrecognized human material, broader searches for sedimentary aDNA, and improvements in the evolutionary information provided by ancient proteins. Interdisciplinary analysis of the growing genetic, fossil and archaeological data will no doubt reveal many new surprises about the roots of modern human lineage.
###
About the Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is both a leading scientific research center and the most visited natural history museum in Europe. With a vision of a future where both humans and the planet thrive, it is uniquely positioned to be a powerful champion in balancing the needs of humanity with those of the natural world.
It is the curator of one of the world’s most important scientific collections with over 80 million copies. The scale of this collection allows researchers from around the world to document how species respond and continue to respond to changes in the environment – which is essential to help predict what may happen in the future and to plan future policies and plans. inform to help the planet.
The museum’s 300 scientists still represent one of the largest groups in the world studying and enabling exploration of every aspect of the natural world. Their science provides crucial data to help the global struggle to save the planet’s future from the great threats of climate change and biodiversity loss to finding solutions such as the sustainable extraction of natural resources.
The museum uses its vast global reach and influence to fulfill its mission of creating advocates for the planet – to inform, inspire and empower everyone to make a difference for nature. We welcome more than five million visitors every year; our digital output reaches hundreds of thousands of people in over 200 countries every month and our traveling exhibitions have been attended by approximately 30 million people over the past 10 years.
About the Francis Crick Institute
The Francis Crick Institute is a biomedical discovery institute dedicated to understanding the fundamental biology underlying health and disease. His work helps to understand why diseases develop and to translate discoveries into new ways to prevent, diagnose and treat diseases such as cancer, heart disease, stroke, infections and neurodegenerative diseases.
An independent organization, its founding partners are the Medical Research Council (MRC), Cancer Research UK, Wellcome, UCL (University College London), Imperial College London and King’s College London.
The Crick was founded in 2015 and in 2016 it moved to a brand new, state-of-the-art building in the center of London, where 1,500 scientists and support staff work together across disciplines, making it the largest biomedical research facility under one roof in Europe.
http: // crick.
About the Pan-African Evolution Research Group
The Pan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History is an independent research group dedicated to investigating the origins of our species and the parallel transformation of environments and ecosystems. The group’s work is unraveling the human narrative from the perspective of poorly explored regions and environments, merging new data and developing new methods of analyzing patterns of population movements, cultural changes, ecological adaptations, diseases and interactions with the now extinct. humanoids. This research feeds on solutions to current global challenges by drawing lessons from the past to find sustainable solutions to the dual biodiversity and climate crises.
The Pan African Research Group was founded in early 2019 under the flagship Lise Meitner Excellence Program of the Max Planck Society.
Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of any press release posted on EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of information through the EurekAlert system.