Ancient DNA
Researchers have analyzed mitochondrial DNA from eight Neanderthal teeth found in Stajnia Cave in Poland, reconstructing the genetic profile of a small group that lived there around 100,000 years ago. The study, published in Current Biology, marks the first such multi-individual genetic picture from a single site north of the Carpathians. The findings show genetic links to Neanderthals across Europe and the Caucasus.
Imeripotiwa na AI
Genetic analysis of remains from a megalithic tomb near Bury, 50 kilometers north of Paris, reveals a complete population turnover around 3000 BC. The earlier group shared genetics with northern European farmers, while newcomers arrived from southern France and the Iberian Peninsula. Researchers link the shift to disease, environmental stress, and social changes.
Researchers have sequenced the second high-quality genome from a Denisovan, extracted from a 200,000-year-old tooth in Siberia's Denisova Cave. This discovery reveals at least three distinct Denisovan populations and evidence of interbreeding with unknown Neanderthals and another mysterious ancient human group. The findings expand our understanding of early human evolution in Asia.
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New research reveals that hippos survived in central Europe much longer than previously believed, persisting in Germany's Upper Rhine Graben until about 31,000 years ago. Ancient DNA and radiocarbon dating show these animals coexisted with mammoths during a milder phase of the last ice age. The findings challenge earlier timelines of hippo extinction in the region.