Neanderthal Genome Sequencing Yields Surprising Results

Praeses

Praeses

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The veil of mystery surrounding our extinct hominid cousins, the Neanderthals, has been at least partially lifted to reveal surprising results. Scientists with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and the Joint Genome Institute (JGI) have sequenced genomic DNA from fossilized Neanderthal bones. Their results show that the genomes of modern humans and Neanderthals are at least 99.5-percent identical, but despite this genetic similarity, and despite the two species having cohabitated the same geographic region for thousands of years, there is no evidence of any significant crossbreeding between the two. Based on these early results, Homo sapiens and Homo neanderthalensis last shared a common ancestor approximately 700,000 years ago
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IF there was cross breeding, which the study says was not the case, I guess the last shared common ancestor would be even longer than 700 000 years ago. Correct me if I'm wrong on that...tis early in the morning xD
 
I guess they mean where neanderthal and homo sapiens split off into their seperate branches from their common ancestor
 
I read the article and ermm yeah, now i'm confused as well on that point :D
 
I haven't read the whole article, but if one uses fossilized Neanderthal bones to sequence the Neanderthal Genome, then surely all the study proves is that the sample of fossilized Neanderthal bones used, showed no inter-breeding between humans and that particular sample of the Neanderthal Genome up to the point in time when those particular Neanderthals expired? There is also the unproven theory that shy hairy bipedal creatures sometimes seen roaming about in some parts of the world might be surviving Neanderthals - personally I suspect they are actually werewolves but that's just me.
 
ic said:
There is also the unproven theory that shy hairy bipedal creatures sometimes seen roaming about in some parts of the world might be surviving Neanderthals - personally I suspect they are actually werewolves but that's just me.
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My pet theory is that they're hippies that escaped from the local loony bin
 
Gru said:
My pet theory is that they're hippies that escaped from the local loony bin
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Yes, but surely hippies would not have a 0.5% genome difference between other members of the human race?

The reason I suspect that Neanderthals and werewolves are one and the same, is that the story goes that a bite from a werewolf introduces some sort of retro-virus which makes changes to a human bitee's DNA and changes the human bitee into a werewolf, which would explain why there is only a 0.5% difference between the human and Neanderthal genomes, as well as the hairyness and lack of inter-breeding aspects - it would be rather difficult the mate with a werewolf and not get bitten and turned into a werewolf...
 
ic said:
Yes, but surely hippies would not have a 0.5% genome difference between other members of the human race?
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The 0.5% difference is due to the way their brains mutate from all the mind altering drugs that some of them consume. :D
 
ic said:
I haven't read the whole article, but if one uses fossilized Neanderthal bones to sequence the Neanderthal Genome, then surely all the study proves is that the sample of fossilized Neanderthal bones used, showed no inter-breeding between humans and that particular sample of the Neanderthal Genome up to the point in time when those particular Neanderthals expired? There is also the unproven theory that shy hairy bipedal creatures sometimes seen roaming about in some parts of the world might be surviving Neanderthals - personally I suspect they are actually werewolves but that's just me.
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Well, the sample is 38,000 yrs old, and they say Neanderthals died out about 30,000 years ago - the sample fairly close to the end of the species. There would in all likelihood have to still be significant traces of Neanderthal DNA in modern Europeans if they had interbred - at least some of the sequences they found. Regarding your unproven theory - there are many shy hairy unwashed bipedals around - normally clutching and apparently drinking from brown paper packets - I always thought they were St. Stithians and Michaelhouse old boys though.
 
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