Oldest Known Human Viruses Discovered In 50,000-Year-Old Neanderthal Bones

An important new finding in the study of how the Neanderthals died out involves the possible role of old viruses. Molecular scientist Marcelo Briones and his team found viral DNA fragments in bones that are 50,000 years old. This offers new information about how our closest extinct relatives died.

Background and Previous Theories

Neanderthals used to live in Eurasia, but they suddenly disappeared around 40,000 years ago. Scientists think that changes in the environment, competition with modern people, and possibly pandemics all played a part in their extinction.

New Evidence of Ancient Viruses

The most recent study of Neanderthal skeletons from Russia’s Chagyrskaya cave found signs of viruses similar to adenovirus, herpesvirus, and papillomavirus. Based on these results, it seems that Neanderthals were able to get diseases that people get today.

Methodology and Challenges

The process of getting DNA out of ancient remains and sequencing it is very tough. Even with these problems, Briones’ team was able to find viral genomes that show the “possible presence” of these pathogens in Neanderthal populations.

More About Neanderthal extinction

Timeline and Interbreeding

• Neanderthals disappeared around 40,000 years ago, with their last confirmed existence in Gibraltar
• Genetic studies suggest interbreeding with Homo sapiens, contributing up to 2% of modern Eurasian DNA

Possible Extinction Factors

• Climate change, dietary limitations, and competition with humans are theorized as extinction factors
• Neanderthal tool culture, called Mousterian, disappeared quickly, which fits with when they vanished.

Vulnerabilities and Adaptability

• Neanderthals needed more energy because their bodies were so strong, which made them vulnerable when supplies ran out.
• They probably had a harder time adapting to quickly changing environments because they had lower birth rates and smaller communities.

More About ancient DNA analysis

Human development has been greatly aided by the discovery that Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred about 50,000 years ago. According to this, the supposed early human brain was fake, proving the Piltdown Man hoax to be false. Utilizing methods like shotgun sequencing, DNA can be recovered from samples that have been severely damaged. This makes it easier to study historical plagues by finding pathogens in remains that are thousands of years old. Genetic information from 4,500-year-old Ethiopian remains has changed our ideas about how people moved around in Sub-Saharan Africa. In addition, a study published in 2019 successfully analyzed DNA from an extinct species that lived 1.9 million years ago, breaking the age limit for genetic material recovery.

Month: Current Affairs - May, 2024

Category: Environment Current Affairs • Science & Technology Current Affairs