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Mori T, Riga A, Aytek AI, Harvati K. Virtual reconstruction and geometric morphometric analysis of the Kocabaş hominin fossil from Turkey: Implications for taxonomy and evolutionary significance. J Hum Evol 2024; 191:103517. [PMID: 38781712 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2024.103517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
The Kocabaş specimen comes from a travertine quarry near the homonymous village in the Denizli basin (Turkey). The specimen comprises three main fragments: portions of the right and left parietal and left and right parts of the frontal bone. The fossil was assumed to belong to the Homo erectus s.l. hypodigm by some authors, whereas others see similarities with Middle Pleistocene fossils (Broken Hill 1/Kabwe, Bodo, or Ceprano). Here, we present the first attempt to make a complete reconstruction of the missing medial portion of the frontal bone and a comprehensive geometric morphometric analysis of this bone. We restored the calotte by aligning and mirroring the three preserved fragments. Afterward, we restored the missing portion by applying the thin-plate spline interpolation algorithm of target fossils onto the reconstructed Kocabaş specimen. For the geometric morphometric analyses, we collected 80 landmarks on the frontal bone (11 osteometric points, 14 bilateral curve semilandmarks, and 41 surface semilandmarks). The comparative sample includes 21 fossils from different chronological periods and geographical areas and 30 adult modern humans from different populations. Shape analyses highlighted the presence in Kocabaş of features usually related to Middle Pleistocene Homo, such as a developed supraorbital torus associated with a relatively short frontal squama and reduced post-toral sulcus. Cluster analysis and linear discriminant analysis classification procedure suggest Kocabaş being part of the same taxonomic unit of Eurasian and African Middle Pleistocene Homo. In light of our results, we consider that attributing the Kocabaş hominin to H. erectus s.l. may be unwarranted. Results of our analyses are compatible with different evolutionary scenarios, but a more precise chronological framework is needed for a thorough discussion of the evolutionary significance of this specimen. Future work should clarify its geological age, given uncertainties regarding its stratigraphic provenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tommaso Mori
- Paleoanthropology, Institute for Archaeological Sciences and Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Rümelinstraasse 23, 72072, Tübingen, Germany; Anthropology Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via del Proconsolo 12, 50122, Florence, Italy.
| | - Alessandro Riga
- Anthropology Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Florence, Via del Proconsolo 12, 50122, Florence, Italy
| | - Ahmet Ihsan Aytek
- Department of Anthropology, Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University, Faculty of Arts and Science, TR-15030, Burdur, Turkey
| | - Katerina Harvati
- Paleoanthropology, Institute for Archaeological Sciences and Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Rümelinstraasse 23, 72072, Tübingen, Germany; DFG Centre for Advanced Studies "Words, Bones, Genes, Tools", Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, Rümelinstraasse 23, 72072, Tübingen, Germany
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Hautavoine H, Arnaud J, Balzeau A, Mounier A. Quantifying hominin morphological diversity at the end of the middle Pleistocene: Implications for the origin of Homo sapiens. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2024; 184:e24915. [PMID: 38444398 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 12/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The Middle Pleistocene (MP) saw the emergence of new species of hominins: Homo sapiens in Africa, H. neanderthalensis, and possibly Denisovans in Eurasia, whose most recent common ancestor is thought to have lived in Africa around 600 ka ago. However, hominin remains from this period present a wide range of morphological variation making it difficult to securely determine their taxonomic attribution and their phylogenetic position within the Homo genus. This study proposes to reconsider the phenetic relationships between MP hominin fossils in order to clarify evolutionary trends and contacts between the populations they represent. MATERIALS AND METHODS We used a Geometric Morphometrics approach to quantify the morphological variation of the calvarium of controversial MP specimens from Africa and Eurasia by using a comparative sample that can be divided into 5 groups: H. ergaster, H. erectus, H. neanderthalensis, and H. sapiens, as well as individuals from current modern human populations. We performed a Generalized Procrustes Analysis, a Principal Component Analysis, and Multinomial Principal Component Logistic Regressions to determine the phenetic affinities of the controversial Middle Pleistocene specimens with the other groups. RESULTS MP African and Eurasian specimens represent several populations, some of which show strong affinities with H. neanderthalensis in Europe or H. sapiens in Africa, others presenting multiple affinities. DISCUSSION These MP populations might have contributed to the emergence of these two species in different proportions. This study proposes a new framework for the human evolutionary history during the MP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hugo Hautavoine
- PaléoFED, Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique (HNHP, UMR 7194), MNHN/CNRS/UPVD, Paris, France
| | - Julie Arnaud
- PaléoFED, Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique (HNHP, UMR 7194), MNHN/CNRS/UPVD, Paris, France
- Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici, Università degli Studi di Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Antoine Balzeau
- PaléoFED, Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique (HNHP, UMR 7194), MNHN/CNRS/UPVD, Paris, France
- Département de Zoologie Africaine, Musée Royal de l'Afrique Centrale, Tervuren, Belgium
| | - Aurélien Mounier
- PaléoFED, Histoire Naturelle de l'Homme Préhistorique (HNHP, UMR 7194), MNHN/CNRS/UPVD, Paris, France
- Turkana Basin Institute, Nairobi, Kenya
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3
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Ge J, Xing S, Grün R, Deng C, Jiang Y, Jiang T, Yang S, Zhao K, Gao X, Yang H, Guo Z, Petraglia MD, Shao Q. New Late Pleistocene age for the Homo sapiens skeleton from Liujiang southern China. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3611. [PMID: 38684677 PMCID: PMC11058812 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47787-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The emergence of Homo sapiens in Eastern Asia is a topic of significant research interest. However, well-preserved human fossils in secure, dateable contexts in this region are extremely rare, and often the subject of intense debate owing to stratigraphic and geochronological problems. Tongtianyan cave, in Liujiang District of Liuzhou City, southern China is one of the most important fossils finds of H. sapiens, though its age has been debated, with chronometric dates ranging from the late Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene. Here we provide new age estimates and revised provenience information for the Liujiang human fossils, which represent one of the most complete fossil skeletons of H. sapiens in China. U-series dating on the human fossils and radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence dating on the fossil-bearing sediments provided ages ranging from ~33,000 to 23,000 years ago (ka). The revised age estimates correspond with the dates of other human fossils in northern China, at Tianyuan Cave (~40.8-38.1 ka) and Zhoukoudian Upper Cave (39.0-36.3 ka), indicating the geographically widespread presence of H. sapiens across Eastern Asia in the Late Pleistocene, which is significant for better understanding human dispersals and adaptations in the region.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junyi Ge
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Song Xing
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
- Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana, Paseo de la Sierra de Atapuerca s/n, Burgos, Spain
| | - Rainer Grün
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University, Brisbane, QD, 4111, Australia
- School of Geography, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Chenglong Deng
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- State Key Laboratory of Lithospheric Evolution, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China
| | | | - Tingyun Jiang
- School of Geography, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Shixia Yang
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Keliang Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Xing Gao
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Huili Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Earthquake Dynamics, Institute of Geology, China Earthquake Administration, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Zhengtang Guo
- Key Laboratory of Cenozoic Geology and Environment, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100029, China
| | - Michael D Petraglia
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University, Brisbane, QD, 4111, Australia.
- Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560, USA.
- School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QD, 4072, Australia.
| | - Qingfeng Shao
- School of Geography, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210023, China.
- Key Laboratory of Virtual Geographic Environment, Ministry of Education, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing, 210023, China.
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Pollen AA, Kilik U, Lowe CB, Camp JG. Human-specific genetics: new tools to explore the molecular and cellular basis of human evolution. Nat Rev Genet 2023; 24:687-711. [PMID: 36737647 PMCID: PMC9897628 DOI: 10.1038/s41576-022-00568-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Our ancestors acquired morphological, cognitive and metabolic modifications that enabled humans to colonize diverse habitats, develop extraordinary technologies and reshape the biosphere. Understanding the genetic, developmental and molecular bases for these changes will provide insights into how we became human. Connecting human-specific genetic changes to species differences has been challenging owing to an abundance of low-effect size genetic changes, limited descriptions of phenotypic differences across development at the level of cell types and lack of experimental models. Emerging approaches for single-cell sequencing, genetic manipulation and stem cell culture now support descriptive and functional studies in defined cell types with a human or ape genetic background. In this Review, we describe how the sequencing of genomes from modern and archaic hominins, great apes and other primates is revealing human-specific genetic changes and how new molecular and cellular approaches - including cell atlases and organoids - are enabling exploration of the candidate causal factors that underlie human-specific traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex A Pollen
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regeneration Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
- Department of Neurology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Umut Kilik
- Institute of Human Biology (IHB), Roche Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, Basel, Switzerland
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Craig B Lowe
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, NC, USA.
| | - J Gray Camp
- Institute of Human Biology (IHB), Roche Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
- University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
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Petersen BC. An economic model and evidence of the evolution of human intelligence in the Middle Pleistocene: Climate change and assortative mating. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0287964. [PMID: 37531351 PMCID: PMC10395973 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023] Open
Abstract
A main objective of this paper is to provide the first model of how climate change, working through sexual selection, could have led to dramatic increases in hominin brain size, and presumably intelligence, in the Middle Pleistocene. The model is built using core elements from the field of family economics, including assortative mating and specialization and complementarities between mates. The main assumptions are that family public goods (e.g., conversation, shelter, fire) were particularly cognitively intensive to produce and became increasingly important for child survival during glacial phases. Intermediate climates (e.g., not the depths of severe glacial phases) create the largest gains from specialization, encouraging negative assortative mating. In contrast, severe glacial phases encourage positive assortative mating because of the rising importance of family public goods. One testable hypothesis is that absence of severe glacial phases should have led to stasis in brain size. Two other testable hypotheses are that severe glacial phases should have led to speciation events, as well as increases in brain size. The evidence shows that there was a million-year stasis in cranial size prior to the start of the severe glacial phases. This stasis is broken by a speciation event (Homo heidelbergensis), with the oldest fossil evidence dated near the close of the first severe glacial phase. In the next 300 kyr, there are two additional severe glacial phases, accompanied by considerable increases in cranial capacity. The last speciation event is Homo sapiens, with the earliest fossils dated near the end of the last of these two glacial phases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruce C Petersen
- Department of Economics, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
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Scerri EML, Will M. The revolution that still isn't: The origins of behavioral complexity in Homo sapiens. J Hum Evol 2023; 179:103358. [PMID: 37058868 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2023.103358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/16/2023]
Abstract
The behavioral origins of Homo sapiens can be traced back to the first material culture produced by our species in Africa, the Middle Stone Age (MSA). Beyond this broad consensus, the origins, patterns, and causes of behavioral complexity in modern humans remain debated. Here, we consider whether recent findings continue to support popular scenarios of: (1) a modern human 'package,' (2) a gradual and 'pan-African' emergence of behavioral complexity, and (3) a direct connection to changes in the human brain. Our geographically structured review shows that decades of scientific research have continuously failed to find a discrete threshold for a complete 'modernity package' and that the concept is theoretically obsolete. Instead of a continent-wide, gradual accumulation of complex material culture, the record exhibits a predominantly asynchronous presence and duration of many innovations across different regions of Africa. The emerging pattern of behavioral complexity from the MSA conforms to an intricate mosaic characterized by spatially discrete, temporally variable, and historically contingent trajectories. This archaeological record bears no direct relation to a simplistic shift in the human brain but rather reflects similar cognitive capacities that are variably manifested. The interaction of multiple causal factors constitutes the most parsimonious explanation driving the variable expression of complex behaviors, with demographic processes such as population structure, size, and connectivity playing a key role. While much emphasis has been given to innovation and variability in the MSA record, long periods of stasis and a lack of cumulative developments argue further against a strictly gradualistic nature in the record. Instead, we are confronted with humanity's deep, variegated roots in Africa, and a dynamic metapopulation that took many millennia to reach the critical mass capable of producing the ratchet effect commonly used to define contemporary human culture. Finally, we note a weakening link between 'modern' human biology and behavior from around 300 ka ago.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor M L Scerri
- Pan-African Evolution Research Group, Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology, Kahlaische Str. 10, 07749, Jena, Germany; Department of Classics and Archaeology, University of Malta, Msida, MSD 2080, Malta; Department of Prehistory, University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
| | - Manuel Will
- Department of Early Prehistory and Quaternary Ecology, University of Tübingen, Schloss Hohentübingen, Burgsteige 11, 72070, Tübingen, Germany
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7
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Meneganzin A, Pievani T, Manzi G. Pan-Africanism vs. single-origin of Homo sapiens: Putting the debate in the light of evolutionary biology. Evol Anthropol 2022; 31:199-212. [PMID: 35848454 PMCID: PMC9540121 DOI: 10.1002/evan.21955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2021] [Revised: 02/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
The scenario of Homo sapiens origin/s within Africa has become increasingly complex, with a pan-African perspective currently challenging the long-established single-origin hypothesis. In this paper, we review the lines of evidence employed in support of each model, highlighting inferential limitations and possible terminological misunderstandings. We argue that the metapopulation scenario envisaged by pan-African proponents well describes a mosaic diversification among late Middle Pleistocene groups. However, this does not rule out a major contribution that emerged from a single population where crucial derived features-notably, a globular braincase-appeared as the result of a punctuated, cladogenetic event. Thus, we suggest that a synthesis is possible and propose a scenario that, in our view, better reconciles with consolidated expectations in evolutionary theory. These indicate cladogenesis in allopatry as an ordinary pattern for the origin of a new species, particularly during phases of marked climatic and environmental instability.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Giorgio Manzi
- Department of Environmental BiologySapienza University of RomeRomeItaly
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8
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White S, Pope M, Hillson S, Soligo C. Geometric morphometric variability in the supraorbital and orbital region of Middle Pleistocene hominins: Implications for the taxonomy and evolution of later Homo. J Hum Evol 2021; 162:103095. [PMID: 34847365 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2020] [Revised: 10/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
This study assessed variation in the supraorbital and orbital region of the Middle Pleistocene hominins (MPHs), sometimes called Homo heidelbergensis s.l., to test whether it matched the expectations of intraspecific variation. The morphological distinctiveness and relative variation of this region, which is relatively well represented in the hominin fossil record, was analyzed quantitatively in a comparative taxonomic framework. Coordinates of 230 3D landmarks (20) and sliding semilandmarks (210) were collected from 704 specimens from species of Homo, Australopithecus, Paranthropus, Gorilla, Pan, Papio, and Macaca. Results showed that the MPHs had expected levels of morphological distinctiveness and intragroup and intergroup variation in supraorbital and orbital morphology, relative to commonly recognized non-hominin catarrhine species. However, the Procrustes distances between this group and H. sapiens were significantly higher than expected for two closely related catarrhine species. Furthermore, this study showed that variation within the MPH could be similarly well contained within existing hypodigms of H. sapiens, H. neanderthalensis, and H. erectus s.l. Although quantitative assessment of supraorbital and orbital morphology did not allow differentiation between taxonomic hypotheses in later Homo, it could be used to test individual taxonomic affiliation and identify potentially anomalous individuals. This study confirmed a complicated pattern of supraorbital and orbital morphology in the MPH fossil record and raises further questions over our understanding of the speciation of H. sapiens and H. neanderthalensis and taxonomic diversity in later Homo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Suzanna White
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, 14 Taviton Street, London, WC1H 0BW, UK.
| | - Matt Pope
- Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, UK
| | - Simon Hillson
- Institute of Archaeology, University College London, 31-34 Gordon Square, London, WC1H 0PY, UK
| | - Christophe Soligo
- Department of Anthropology, University College London, 14 Taviton Street, London, WC1H 0BW, UK
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Wu X, Pei S, Cai Y, Tong H, Xing S, Jashashvili T, Carlson KJ, Liu W. Morphological description and evolutionary significance of 300 ka hominin facial bones from Hualongdong, China. J Hum Evol 2021; 161:103052. [PMID: 34601289 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2021.103052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Revised: 07/10/2021] [Accepted: 07/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Late Middle Pleistocene hominins in Africa displaying key modern morphologies by 315 ka are claimed as the earliest Homo sapiens. Evolutionary relationships among East Asian hominins appear complex due to a growing fossil record of late Middle Pleistocene hominins from the region, reflecting mosaic morphologies that contribute to a lack of consensus on when and how the transition to modern humans transpired. Newly discovered 300 ka hominin fossils from Hualongdong, China, provide further evidence to clarify these relationships in the region. In this study, facial morphology of the juvenile partial cranium (HLD 6) is described and qualitatively and quantitatively compared with that of other key Early, Middle, and Late Pleistocene hominins from East Asia, Africa, West Asia, and Europe and with a sample of modern humans. Qualitatively, facial morphology of HLD 6 resembles that of Early and Middle Pleistocene hominins from Zhoukoudian, Nanjing, Dali, and Jinniushan in China, as well as others from Java, Africa, and Europe in some of these features (e.g., supraorbital and malar regions), and Late Pleistocene hominins and modern humans from East Asia, Africa, and Europe in other features (e.g., weak prognathism, flat face and features in nasal and hard plate regions). Comparisons of HLD 6 measurements to group means and multivariate analyses support close affinities of HLD 6 to Late Pleistocene hominins and modern humans. Expression of a mosaic morphological pattern in the HLD 6 facial skeleton further complicates evolutionary interpretations of regional morphological diversity in East Asia. The prevalence of modern features in HLD 6 suggests that the hominin population to which HLD 6 belonged may represent the earliest pre-modern humans in East Asia. Thus, the transition from archaic to modern morphology in East Asian hominins may have occurred at least by 300 ka, which is 80,000 to 100,000 years earlier than previously recognized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiujie Wu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Shuwen Pei
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Yanjun Cai
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 710049 Xi'an, China
| | - Haowen Tong
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Song Xing
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Tea Jashashvili
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA, 90033, USA; Department of Geology and Paleontology, Georgian National Museum, Tbilisi, 0105, Georgia
| | - Kristian J Carlson
- Department of Integrative Anatomical Sciences, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA, 90033, USA; Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2000 South Africa.
| | - Wu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100044, China; Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing, 100044, China.
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10
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Pamjav H, Krizsán K. Biologia futura: confessions in genes. Biol Futur 2021; 71:435-441. [PMID: 34554462 DOI: 10.1007/s42977-020-00049-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Y-DNA and mtDNA have been a widely used tool not only in forensic genetic applications but in human evolutionary and population genetic studies. Its paternal or maternal inheritance and lack of recombination have offered the opportunity to explore genealogical relationships among individuals and to study the frequency differences of paternal and maternal clades among human populations at continental and regional levels. It is unbelievable, but true, that the disadvantages of paternal and maternal lineages in forensic genetic studies, i.e., everyone within a family have the same paternal or maternal haplotype and haplogroup, become advantages in human evolutionary studies, i.e., reveal the genetic history of successful mothers and successful fathers. Thanks to these amazing properties of haploid markers, they provide tools for mapping the migration routes of human populations during prehistoric and historical periods, separately as maternal and paternal lineages, and together as the genetic history of a population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Horolma Pamjav
- Institute of Forensic Genetics, Hungarian Institute for Forensic Sciences, PO: 314/4, Budapest, 1903, Hungary.
| | - Krisztina Krizsán
- Institute of Forensic Genetics, Hungarian Institute for Forensic Sciences, PO: 314/4, Budapest, 1903, Hungary
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Abstract
The study of ancient genomes has burgeoned at an incredible rate in the last decade. The result is a shift in archaeological narratives, bringing with it a fierce debate on the place of genetics in anthropological research. Archaeogenomics has challenged and scrutinized fundamental themes of anthropological research, including human origins, movement of ancient and modern populations, the role of social organization in shaping material culture, and the relationship between culture, language, and ancestry. Moreover, the discussion has inevitably invoked new debates on indigenous rights, ownership of ancient materials, inclusion in the scientific process, and even the meaning of what it is to be a human. We argue that the broad and seemingly daunting ethical, methodological, and theoretical challenges posed by archaeogenomics, in fact, represent the very cutting edge of social science research. Here, we provide a general review of the field by introducing the contemporary discussion points and summarizing methodological and ethical concerns, while highlighting the exciting possibilities of ancient genome studies in archaeology from an anthropological perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omer Gokcumen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York 14221, USA
| | - Michael Frachetti
- Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63130, USA
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12
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Vicente M, Schlebusch CM. African population history: an ancient DNA perspective. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2020; 62:8-15. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2020.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2020] [Revised: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 05/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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13
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Grün R, Pike A, McDermott F, Eggins S, Mortimer G, Aubert M, Kinsley L, Joannes-Boyau R, Rumsey M, Denys C, Brink J, Clark T, Stringer C. Dating the skull from Broken Hill, Zambia, and its position in human evolution. Nature 2020; 580:372-375. [PMID: 32296179 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2165-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/30/2020] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
The cranium from Broken Hill (Kabwe) was recovered from cave deposits in 1921, during metal ore mining in what is now Zambia1. It is one of the best-preserved skulls of a fossil hominin, and was initially designated as the type specimen of Homo rhodesiensis, but recently it has often been included in the taxon Homo heidelbergensis2-4. However, the original site has since been completely quarried away, and-although the cranium is often estimated to be around 500 thousand years old5-7-its unsystematic recovery impedes its accurate dating and placement in human evolution. Here we carried out analyses directly on the skull and found a best age estimate of 299 ± 25 thousand years (mean ± 2σ). The result suggests that later Middle Pleistocene Africa contained multiple contemporaneous hominin lineages (that is, Homo sapiens8,9, H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis and Homo naledi10,11), similar to Eurasia, where Homo neanderthalensis, the Denisovans, Homo floresiensis, Homo luzonensis and perhaps also Homo heidelbergensis and Homo erectus12 were found contemporaneously. The age estimate also raises further questions about the mode of evolution of H. sapiens in Africa and whether H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis was a direct ancestor of our species13,14.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rainer Grün
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia. .,Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
| | - Alistair Pike
- Faculty of Humanities, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Frank McDermott
- UCD School of Earth Sciences, University College Dublin,, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Stephen Eggins
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Graham Mortimer
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Maxime Aubert
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.,Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution & Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
| | - Lesley Kinsley
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
| | - Renaud Joannes-Boyau
- Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.,Geoscience, Southern Cross University, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Michael Rumsey
- Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, UK
| | - Christiane Denys
- Institut de Systématique, Evolution, Biodiversité (ISYEB), Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, EPHE, Université des Antilles, Paris, France
| | - James Brink
- Florisbad Quaternary Research, National Museum, Bloemfontein, South Africa.,Centre for Environmental Management, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa
| | - Tara Clark
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Griffith University, Nathan, Queensland, Australia.,School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia.,School of Earth, Atmospheric & Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Chris Stringer
- CHER, Department of Earth Sciences, Natural History Museum, London, UK.
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14
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What have the revelations about Neanderthal DNA revealed about Homo sapiens? ANTHROPOLOGICAL REVIEW 2020. [DOI: 10.2478/anre-2020-0008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetic studies have presented increasing indications about the complexity of the interactions between Homo sapiens, Neanderthals and Denisovans, during Pleistocene. The results indicate potential replacement or admixture of the groups of hominins that lived in the same region at different times. Recently, the time of separation among these hominins in relation to the Last Common Ancestor – LCA has been reasonably well established. Events of mixing with emphasis on the Neanderthal gene flow into H. sapiens outside Africa, Denisovans into H. sapiens ancestors in Oceania and continental Asia, Neanderthals into Denisovans, as well as the origin of some phenotypic features in specific populations such as the color of the skin, eyes, hair and predisposition to develop certain kinds of diseases have also been found. The current information supports the existence of both replacement and interbreeding events, and indicates the need to revise the two main explanatory models, the Multiregional and the Out-of-Africa hypotheses, about the origin and evolution of H. sapiens and its co-relatives. There is definitely no longer the possibility of justifying only one model over the other. This paper aims to provide a brief review and update on the debate around this issue, considering the advances brought about by the recent genetic as well as morphological traits analyses.
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15
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d'Errico F, Pitarch Martí A, Shipton C, Le Vraux E, Ndiema E, Goldstein S, Petraglia MD, Boivin N. Trajectories of cultural innovation from the Middle to Later Stone Age in Eastern Africa: Personal ornaments, bone artifacts, and ocher from Panga ya Saidi, Kenya. J Hum Evol 2020; 141:102737. [PMID: 32163764 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.102737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Revised: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
African Middle Stone Age (MSA) populations used pigments, manufactured and wore personal ornaments, made abstract engravings, and produced fully shaped bone tools. However, ongoing research across Africa reveals variability in the emergence of cultural innovations in the MSA and their subsequent development through the Later Stone Age (LSA). When present, it appears that cultural innovations manifest regional variability, suggestive of distinct cultural traditions. In eastern Africa, several Late Pleistocene sites have produced evidence for novel activities, but the chronologies of key behavioral innovations remain unclear. The 3 m deep, well-dated, Panga ya Saidi sequence in eastern Kenya, encompassing 19 layers covering a time span of 78 kyr beginning in late Marine Isotope Stage 5, is the only known African site recording the interplay between cultural and ecological diversity in a coastal forested environment. Excavations have yielded worked and incised bones, ostrich eggshell beads (OES), beads made from seashells, worked and engraved ocher pieces, fragments of coral, and a belemnite fossil. Here, we provide, for the first time, a detailed analysis of this material. This includes a taphonomic, archeozoological, technological, and functional study of bone artifacts; a technological and morphometric analysis of personal ornaments; and a technological and geochemical analysis of ocher pieces. The interpretation of the results stemming from the analysis of OES beads is guided by an ethnoarcheological perspective and field observations. We demonstrate that key cultural innovations on the eastern African coast are evident by 67 ka and exhibit remarkable diversity through the LSA and Iron Age. We suggest the cultural trajectories evident at Panga ya Saidi were shaped by both regional traditions and cultural/demic diffusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco d'Errico
- UMR 5199 CNRS De La Préhistoire à L'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Allée Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, CS 50023 F - 33615 Pessac CEDEX, Talence, France; Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour, Øysteinsgate 3, Postboks 7805, 5020 University of Bergen, Norway.
| | - Africa Pitarch Martí
- UMR 5199 CNRS De La Préhistoire à L'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Allée Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, CS 50023 F - 33615 Pessac CEDEX, Talence, France; Seminari d'Estudis i Recerques Prehistòriques (SERP), Facultat de Geografia i Història, Departament d'Història i Arqueologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Montalegre 6, 08001, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ceri Shipton
- Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University, ACT 0200, Australia
| | - Emma Le Vraux
- UMR 5199 CNRS De La Préhistoire à L'Actuel: Culture, Environnement, et Anthropologie (PACEA), Université Bordeaux, Allée Geoffroy Saint Hilaire, CS 50023 F - 33615 Pessac CEDEX, Talence, France
| | - Emmanuel Ndiema
- National Museums of Kenya, Department of Earth Sciences, Box 40658 - 00100, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Steven Goldstein
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Kahlaische Strasse 10, D-07745 Jena, Germany
| | - Michael D Petraglia
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Kahlaische Strasse 10, D-07745 Jena, Germany; Human Origins Program, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 20560, USA; School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Nicole Boivin
- Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Kahlaische Strasse 10, D-07745 Jena, Germany; School of Social Science, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD 4072, Australia; Department of Anthropology and Archaeology, University of Calgary, 2500 University Dr. N.W., Calgary, AB, T2N 1N4, Canada; Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 10th St. & Constitution Ave. NW Washington, D.C. 20560, USA
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16
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Jarrett P, Scragg R. Evolution, Prehistory and Vitamin D. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 17:ijerph17020646. [PMID: 31963858 PMCID: PMC7027011 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17020646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2019] [Revised: 01/12/2020] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Aspects of human evolutionary biology and prehistory are discussed in relation to vitamin D. The evolution of hairlessness, combined with the need for efficient eccrine sweat production for cooling, provided evolutionary pressure to protect the skin from ultraviolet damage by developing cutaneous pigmentation. There was a subsequent loss of pigmentation as humans journeyed to northern latitudes. Their increasing mastery of technology outstripped evolution's finite pace as further dispersal occurred around the globe. A timeline for the development of clothing to provide warmth, and the consequent shielding from ultraviolet light, which diminished vitamin D synthesis, can be inferred by an examination of mutations in the human louse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Jarrett
- Department of Dermatology, Middlemore Hospital, Auckland 2025, New Zealand
- Department of Medicine, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
| | - Robert Scragg
- Department of Population Health, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1072, New Zealand;
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17
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Mounier A, Mirazón Lahr M. Deciphering African late middle Pleistocene hominin diversity and the origin of our species. Nat Commun 2019; 10:3406. [PMID: 31506422 PMCID: PMC6736881 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-11213-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2017] [Accepted: 05/14/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The origin of Homo sapiens remains a matter of debate. The extent and geographic patterning of morphological diversity among Late Middle Pleistocene (LMP) African hominins is largely unknown, thus precluding the definition of boundaries of variability in early H. sapiens and the interpretation of individual fossils. Here we use a phylogenetic modelling method to predict possible morphologies of a last common ancestor of all modern humans, which we compare to LMP African fossils (KNM-ES 11693, Florisbad, Irhoud 1, Omo II, and LH18). Our results support a complex process for the evolution of H. sapiens, with the recognition of different, geographically localised, populations and lineages in Africa - not all of which contributed to our species' origin. Based on the available fossils, H. sapiens appears to have originated from the coalescence of South and, possibly, East-African source populations, while North-African fossils may represent a population which introgressed into Neandertals during the LMP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurélien Mounier
- UMR 7194, CNRS, Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Musée de l'Homme, 17 place du Trocadéro et du 11 novembre, 75016, Paris, France.
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Street, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, United Kingdom.
| | - Marta Mirazón Lahr
- Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Street, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, United Kingdom
- Turkana Basin Institute, Hardy Post, Ushirika Road, Karen, P.O. Box 24467, Nairobi, 00502, Kenya
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18
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26Al/ 10Be Burial Dating of the Middle Pleistocene Yiyuan Hominin Fossil Site, Shandong Province, Northern China. Sci Rep 2019; 9:6961. [PMID: 31061440 PMCID: PMC6502808 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-43401-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2018] [Accepted: 04/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The Yiyuan hominin fossil site is one of the few localities in China where a partial skullcap and several loose teeth of Homo erectus have been discovered. Yiyuan was previously assigned broadly to the Middle Pleistocene by biostratigraphical correlation and ESR/U-series dating. Here, we report the first application of a radio-isotopic dating method to the site. 26Al/10Be burial dating results derived from two sand samples from the fossiliferous deposits show that the hominin fossils can be confidently dated to 0.64 ± 0.08 Ma (million years ago). The reliability of this age is supported by the zero age of modern fluvial sediment near the cave. Our result is consistent with the age estimation based on biostratigraphic correlation and supports the argument that the Yiyuan and Zhoukoudian Locality 1 H. erectus fossils are contemporaneous. The results presented here, along with other recent chronological studies on Chinese Middle Pleistocene hominin sites, indicate that the time span from 600–400 ka (thousand years ago) is a critical period for human evolution in East Asia. Importantly, this time bracket includes several major climatic changes that would have influenced hominins, both morphologically and behaviorally.
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19
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Late Middle Pleistocene hominin teeth from Tongzi, southern China. J Hum Evol 2019; 130:96-108. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2019.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2018] [Revised: 02/28/2019] [Accepted: 03/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
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20
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The evolutionary history of the human face. Nat Ecol Evol 2019; 3:726-736. [DOI: 10.1038/s41559-019-0865-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2019] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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21
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Vyas DN, Mulligan CJ. Analyses of Neanderthal introgression suggest that Levantine and southern Arabian populations have a shared population history. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 169:227-239. [PMID: 30889271 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Revised: 01/11/2019] [Accepted: 02/21/2019] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Modern humans are thought to have interbred with Neanderthals in the Near East soon after modern humans dispersed out of Africa. This introgression event likely took place in either the Levant or southern Arabia depending on the dispersal route out of Africa that was followed. In this study, we compare Neanderthal introgression in contemporary Levantine and southern Arabian populations to investigate Neanderthal introgression and to study Near Eastern population history. MATERIALS AND METHODS We analyzed genotyping data on >400,000 autosomal SNPs from seven Levantine and five southern Arabian populations and compared these data to those from populations from around the world including Neanderthal and Denisovan genomes. We used f4 and D statistics to estimate and compare levels of Neanderthal introgression between Levantine, southern Arabian, and comparative global populations. We also identified 1,581 putative Neanderthal-introgressed SNPs within our dataset and analyzed their allele frequencies as a means to compare introgression patterns in Levantine and southern Arabian genomes. RESULTS We find that Levantine and southern Arabian populations have similar levels of Neanderthal introgression to each other but lower levels than other non-Africans. Furthermore, we find that introgressed SNPs have very similar allele frequencies in the Levant and southern Arabia, which indicates that Neanderthal introgression is similarly distributed in Levantine and southern Arabian genomes. DISCUSSION We infer that the ancestors of contemporary Levantine and southern Arabian populations received Neanderthal introgression prior to separating from each other and that there has been extensive gene flow between these populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deven N Vyas
- Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.,Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
| | - Connie J Mulligan
- Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida.,Genetics Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
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22
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Molinaro L, Pagani L. Human evolutionary history of Eastern Africa. Curr Opin Genet Dev 2018; 53:134-139. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2018.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2018] [Revised: 08/31/2018] [Accepted: 10/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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23
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The affinities of Homo antecessor – a review of craniofacial features and their taxonomic validity. ANTHROPOLOGICAL REVIEW 2018. [DOI: 10.2478/anre-2018-0020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The phylogenetic affinities of Homo antecessor, a hominin dating from the early Middle Pleistocene of Europe, are still unclear. In this study we conducted a comprehensive review of the TD6 hypodigm within the context of the historical development of paleoanthropological issues concerning this species. H. antecessor, based on all available craniofacial features to date, displays a midfacial morphology very similar to specimens attributed to Classic Homo erectus, suggesting that H. antecessor is the geographical European variant of Classic H. erectus.
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24
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Schlebusch CM, Jakobsson M. Tales of Human Migration, Admixture, and Selection in Africa. Annu Rev Genomics Hum Genet 2018; 19:405-428. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-genom-083117-021759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
In the last three decades, genetic studies have played an increasingly important role in exploring human history. They have helped to conclusively establish that anatomically modern humans first appeared in Africa roughly 250,000–350,000 years before present and subsequently migrated to other parts of the world. The history of humans in Africa is complex and includes demographic events that influenced patterns of genetic variation across the continent. Through genetic studies, it has become evident that deep African population history is captured by relationships among African hunter–gatherers, as the world's deepest population divergences occur among these groups, and that the deepest population divergence dates to 300,000 years before present. However, the spread of pastoralism and agriculture in the last few thousand years has shaped the geographic distribution of present-day Africans and their genetic diversity. With today's sequencing technologies, we can obtain full genome sequences from diverse sets of extant and prehistoric Africans. The coming years will contribute exciting new insights toward deciphering human evolutionary history in Africa.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina M. Schlebusch
- Human Evolution, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden;,
- Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, 2006 Johannesburg, South Africa
- SciLifeLab, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mattias Jakobsson
- Human Evolution, Department of Organismal Biology, Uppsala University, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden;,
- Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, 2006 Johannesburg, South Africa
- SciLifeLab, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden
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25
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Sharbrough J, Havird JC, Noe GR, Warren JM, Sloan DB. The Mitonuclear Dimension of Neanderthal and Denisovan Ancestry in Modern Human Genomes. Genome Biol Evol 2018; 9:1567-1581. [PMID: 28854627 PMCID: PMC5509035 DOI: 10.1093/gbe/evx114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Some human populations interbred with Neanderthals and Denisovans, resulting in substantial contributions to modern-human genomes. Therefore, it is now possible to use genomic data to investigate mechanisms that shaped historical gene flow between humans and our closest hominin relatives. More generally, in eukaryotes, mitonuclear interactions have been argued to play a disproportionate role in generating reproductive isolation. There is no evidence of mtDNA introgression into modern human populations, which means that all introgressed nuclear alleles from archaic hominins must function on a modern-human mitochondrial background. Therefore, mitonuclear interactions are also potentially relevant to hominin evolution. We performed a detailed accounting of mtDNA divergence among hominin lineages and used population-genomic data to test the hypothesis that mitonuclear incompatibilities have preferentially restricted the introgression of nuclear genes with mitochondrial functions. We found a small but significant underrepresentation of introgressed Neanderthal alleles at such nuclear loci. Structural analyses of mitochondrial enzyme complexes revealed that these effects are unlikely to be mediated by physically interacting sites in mitochondrial and nuclear gene products. We did not detect any underrepresentation of introgressed Denisovan alleles at mitochondrial-targeted loci, but this may reflect reduced power because locus-specific estimates of Denisovan introgression are more conservative. Overall, we conclude that genes involved in mitochondrial function may have been subject to distinct selection pressures during the history of introgression from archaic hominins but that mitonuclear incompatibilities have had, at most, a small role in shaping genome-wide introgression patterns, perhaps because of limited functional divergence in mtDNA and interacting nuclear genes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel Sharbrough
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Justin C Havird
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Gregory R Noe
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Jessica M Warren
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
| | - Daniel B Sloan
- Department of Biology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO
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26
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Li F, Kuhn SL, Chen F, Wang Y, Southon J, Peng F, Shan M, Wang C, Ge J, Wang X, Yun T, Gao X. The easternmost Middle Paleolithic (Mousterian) from Jinsitai Cave, North China. J Hum Evol 2018; 114:76-84. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2017] [Revised: 10/04/2017] [Accepted: 10/05/2017] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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27
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28
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29
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Athreya S, Wu X. A multivariate assessment of the Dali hominin cranium from China: Morphological affinities and implications for Pleistocene evolution in East Asia. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2017; 164:679-701. [PMID: 29068047 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2017] [Revised: 08/15/2017] [Accepted: 08/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES A nearly complete hominin fossil cranium from Dali in Shaanxi Province, China was excavated in 1978. We update and expand on previous research by providing a multivariate analysis of the specimen relative to a large sample of Middle and Late Pleistocene hominins. MATERIALS AND METHODS We apply principal components analysis, discriminant function analysis, and a method of assessing group membership based on a soft independent model of class analogy (SIMCA) to the study of Dali's cranial morphology. We evaluate Dali's affinities within the context of Middle and Late Pleistocene Homo patterns of craniofacial morphology. RESULTS When just the facial skeleton is considered, Dali aligns with Middle Paleolithic H. sapiens and is clearly more derived than African or Eurasian Middle Pleistocene Homo. When just the neurocranium is considered, Dali is most similar to African and Eastern Eurasian but not Western European Middle Pleistocene Homo. When both sets of variables are considered together, Dali exhibits a unique morphology that is most closely aligned with the earliest H. sapiens from North Africa and the Levant. DISCUSSION These results add perspective to our previous view of as Dali a "transitional" form between Chinese H. erectus and H. sapiens. Athough no taxonomic allocation is appropriate at this time for Dali, it appears to represent a population that played a more central role in the origin of Chinese H. sapiens. Dali's affinities can be understood in the context of Wu's Continuity with Hybridization scenario and a braided-stream network model of gene flow. Specifically, we propose that Pleistocene populations in China were shaped by periods of isolated evolutionary change within local lineages at certain times, and gene flow between local lineages or between Eastern and Western Eurasia, and Africa at other times, resulting in contributions being made in different capacities to different regions at different times.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheela Athreya
- Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, MS 4352 TAMU, College Station, Texas 77843
| | - Xinzhi Wu
- Laboratory for Human Evolution, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100044, China
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30
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New fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco and the pan-African origin of Homo sapiens. Nature 2017; 546:289-292. [PMID: 28593953 DOI: 10.1038/nature22336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 316] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Accepted: 04/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Fossil evidence points to an African origin of Homo sapiens from a group called either H. heidelbergensis or H. rhodesiensis. However, the exact place and time of emergence of H. sapiens remain obscure because the fossil record is scarce and the chronological age of many key specimens remains uncertain. In particular, it is unclear whether the present day 'modern' morphology rapidly emerged approximately 200 thousand years ago (ka) among earlier representatives of H. sapiens or evolved gradually over the last 400 thousand years. Here we report newly discovered human fossils from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco, and interpret the affinities of the hominins from this site with other archaic and recent human groups. We identified a mosaic of features including facial, mandibular and dental morphology that aligns the Jebel Irhoud material with early or recent anatomically modern humans and more primitive neurocranial and endocranial morphology. In combination with an age of 315 ± 34 thousand years (as determined by thermoluminescence dating), this evidence makes Jebel Irhoud the oldest and richest African Middle Stone Age hominin site that documents early stages of the H. sapiens clade in which key features of modern morphology were established. Furthermore, it shows that the evolutionary processes behind the emergence of H. sapiens involved the whole African continent.
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31
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Schlebusch CM, Malmström H, Günther T, Sjödin P, Coutinho A, Edlund H, Munters AR, Vicente M, Steyn M, Soodyall H, Lombard M, Jakobsson M. Southern African ancient genomes estimate modern human divergence to 350,000 to 260,000 years ago. Science 2017; 358:652-655. [PMID: 28971970 DOI: 10.1126/science.aao6266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 183] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2017] [Accepted: 09/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Southern Africa is consistently placed as a potential region for the evolution of Homo sapiens We present genome sequences, up to 13x coverage, from seven ancient individuals from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The remains of three Stone Age hunter-gatherers (about 2000 years old) were genetically similar to current-day southern San groups, and those of four Iron Age farmers (300 to 500 years old) were genetically similar to present-day Bantu-language speakers. We estimate that all modern-day Khoe-San groups have been influenced by 9 to 30% genetic admixture from East Africans/Eurasians. Using traditional and new approaches, we estimate the first modern human population divergence time to between 350,000 and 260,000 years ago. This estimate increases the deepest divergence among modern humans, coinciding with anatomical developments of archaic humans into modern humans, as represented in the local fossil record.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina M Schlebusch
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden.,Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, Post Office Box 524, Auckland Park, 2006, South Africa
| | - Helena Malmström
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden.,Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, Post Office Box 524, Auckland Park, 2006, South Africa
| | - Torsten Günther
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Per Sjödin
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Alexandra Coutinho
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Hanna Edlund
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Arielle R Munters
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Mário Vicente
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Maryna Steyn
- Human Variation and Identification Research Unit, School of Anatomical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
| | - Himla Soodyall
- Division of Human Genetics, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand and National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Marlize Lombard
- Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, Post Office Box 524, Auckland Park, 2006, South Africa. .,Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS), Wallenberg Research Centre at Stellenbosch University, Marais Street, Stellenbosch, 7600, South Africa
| | - Mattias Jakobsson
- Department of Organismal Biology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Norbyvägen 18C, SE-752 36 Uppsala, Sweden. .,Centre for Anthropological Research and Department of Anthropology and Development Studies, University of Johannesburg, Post Office Box 524, Auckland Park, 2006, South Africa.,Science for Life Laboratory (SciLife Lab), Uppsala, Sweden
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Stringer C. The origin and evolution of Homo sapiens. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2017; 371:rstb.2015.0237. [PMID: 27298468 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/29/2016] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
If we restrict the use of Homo sapiens in the fossil record to specimens which share a significant number of derived features in the skeleton with extant H. sapiens, the origin of our species would be placed in the African late middle Pleistocene, based on fossils such as Omo Kibish 1, Herto 1 and 2, and the Levantine material from Skhul and Qafzeh. However, genetic data suggest that we and our sister species Homo neanderthalensis shared a last common ancestor in the middle Pleistocene approximately 400-700 ka, which is at least 200 000 years earlier than the species origin indicated from the fossils already mentioned. Thus, it is likely that the African fossil record will document early members of the sapiens lineage showing only some of the derived features of late members of the lineage. On that basis, I argue that human fossils such as those from Jebel Irhoud, Florisbad, Eliye Springs and Omo Kibish 2 do represent early members of the species, but variation across the African later middle Pleistocene/early Middle Stone Age fossils shows that there was not a simple linear progression towards later sapiens morphology, and there was chronological overlap between different 'archaic' and 'modern' morphs. Even in the late Pleistocene within and outside Africa, we find H. sapiens specimens which are clearly outside the range of Holocene members of the species, showing the complexity of recent human evolution. The impact on species recognition of late Pleistocene gene flow between the lineages of modern humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans is also discussed, and finally, I reconsider the nature of the middle Pleistocene ancestor of these lineages, based on recent morphological and genetic data.This article is part of the themed issue 'Major transitions in human evolution'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris Stringer
- Department of Earth Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, UK
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Vyas DN, Al‐Meeri A, Mulligan CJ. Testing support for the northern and southern dispersal routes out of Africa: an analysis of Levantine and southern Arabian populations. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2017; 164:736-749. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23312] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2017] [Revised: 08/28/2017] [Accepted: 08/29/2017] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Deven N. Vyas
- Department of AnthropologyUniversity of Florida, 1112 Turlington Hall, PO Box 117305Gainesville Florida 32611‐7305
- Genetics InstituteUniversity of Florida, Cancer & Genetics Research Complex, PO Box 103610Gainesville Florida 32610‐3610
| | - Ali Al‐Meeri
- Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Health SciencesUniversity of Sana'aSana'a Yemen
| | - Connie J. Mulligan
- Department of AnthropologyUniversity of Florida, 1112 Turlington Hall, PO Box 117305Gainesville Florida 32611‐7305
- Genetics InstituteUniversity of Florida, Cancer & Genetics Research Complex, PO Box 103610Gainesville Florida 32610‐3610
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Reiner WB, Masao F, Sholts SB, Songita AV, Stanistreet I, Stollhofen H, Taylor RE, Hlusko LJ. OH 83: A new early modern human fossil cranium from the Ndutu beds of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2017; 164:533-545. [PMID: 28786473 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2016] [Revised: 05/02/2017] [Accepted: 07/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Herein we introduce a newly recovered partial calvaria, OH 83, from the upper Ndutu Beds of Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. We present the geological context of its discovery and a comparative analysis of its morphology, placing OH 83 within the context of our current understanding of the origins and evolution of Homo sapiens. MATERIALS AND METHODS We comparatively assessed the morphology of OH 83 using quantitative and qualitative data from penecontemporaneous fossils and the W.W. Howells modern human craniometric dataset. RESULTS OH 83 is geologically dated to ca. 60-32 ka. Its morphology is indicative of an early modern human, falling at the low end of the range of variation for post-orbital cranial breadth, the high end of the range for bifrontal breadth, and near average in frontal length. DISCUSSION There have been numerous attempts to use cranial anatomy to define the species Homo sapiens and identify it in the fossil record. These efforts have not met wide agreement by the scientific community due, in part, to the mosaic patterns of cranial variation represented by the fossils. The variable, mosaic pattern of trait expression in the crania of Middle and Late Pleistocene fossils implies that morphological modernity did not occur at once. However, OH 83 demonstrates that by ca. 60-32 ka modern humans in Africa included individuals that are at the fairly small and gracile range of modern human cranial variation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Whitney B Reiner
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, MC 3140, Berkeley, California, 94720
| | - Fidelis Masao
- University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, TZ, 35091.,Conservation Olduvai Project, Dar es Salaam, TZ, 35091
| | - Sabrina B Sholts
- Department of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, 20560
| | | | - Ian Stanistreet
- University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 3GP, UK.,The Stone Age Institute, Bloomington, Indiana, 47407
| | - Harald Stollhofen
- GeoZentrum Nordbayern, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, 91054, Germany
| | - R E Taylor
- University of California Riverside, Riverside, California, 92521
| | - Leslea J Hlusko
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of California Berkeley, MC 3140, Berkeley, California, 94720
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Dirks PH, Roberts EM, Hilbert-Wolf H, Kramers JD, Hawks J, Dosseto A, Duval M, Elliott M, Evans M, Grün R, Hellstrom J, Herries AI, Joannes-Boyau R, Makhubela TV, Placzek CJ, Robbins J, Spandler C, Wiersma J, Woodhead J, Berger LR. The age of Homo naledi and associated sediments in the Rising Star Cave, South Africa. eLife 2017; 6. [PMID: 28483040 PMCID: PMC5423772 DOI: 10.7554/elife.24231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 98] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2016] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
New ages for flowstone, sediments and fossil bones from the Dinaledi Chamber are presented. We combined optically stimulated luminescence dating of sediments with U-Th and palaeomagnetic analyses of flowstones to establish that all sediments containing Homo naledi fossils can be allocated to a single stratigraphic entity (sub-unit 3b), interpreted to be deposited between 236 ka and 414 ka. This result has been confirmed independently by dating three H. naledi teeth with combined U-series and electron spin resonance (US-ESR) dating. Two dating scenarios for the fossils were tested by varying the assumed levels of 222Rn loss in the encasing sediments: a maximum age scenario provides an average age for the two least altered fossil teeth of 253 +82/–70 ka, whilst a minimum age scenario yields an average age of 200 +70/–61 ka. We consider the maximum age scenario to more closely reflect conditions in the cave, and therefore, the true age of the fossils. By combining the US-ESR maximum age estimate obtained from the teeth, with the U-Th age for the oldest flowstone overlying Homo naledi fossils, we have constrained the depositional age of Homo naledi to a period between 236 ka and 335 ka. These age results demonstrate that a morphologically primitive hominin, Homo naledi, survived into the later parts of the Pleistocene in Africa, and indicate a much younger age for the Homo naledi fossils than have previously been hypothesized based on their morphology. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.24231.001 Species of ancient humans and the extinct relatives of our ancestors are typically described from a limited number of fossils. However, this was not the case with Homo naledi. More than 1500 fossils representing at least 15 individuals of this species were unearthed from the Rising Star cave system in South Africa between 2013 and 2014. Found deep underground in the Dinaledi Chamber, the H. naledi fossils are the largest collection of a single species of an ancient human-relative discovered in Africa. After the discovery was reported, a number of questions still remained. Not least among these questions was: how old were the fossils? The material was undated, and predictions ranged from anywhere between 2 million years old and 100,000 years old. H. naledi shared several traits with the most primitive of our ancient relatives, including its small brain. As a result, many scientists guessed that H. naledi was an old species in our family tree, and possibly one of the earliest species to evolve in the genus Homo. Now, Dirks et al. – who include many of the researchers who were involved in the discovery of H. naledi – report that the fossils are most likely between 236,000 and 335,000 years old. These dates are based on measuring the concentration of radioactive elements, and the damage caused by these elements (which accumulates over time), in three fossilized teeth, plus surrounding rock and sediments from the cave chamber. Importantly, the most crucial tests were carried out at independent laboratories around the world, and the scientists conducted the tests without knowing the results of the other laboratories. Dirks et al. took these extra steps to make sure that the results obtained were reproducible and unbiased. The estimated dates are much more recent than many had predicted, and mean that H. naledi was alive at the same time as the earliest members of our own species – which most likely evolved between 300,000 and 200,000 years ago. These new findings demonstrate why it can be unwise to try to predict the age of a fossil based only on its appearance, and emphasize the importance of dating specimens via independent tests. Finally in two related reports, Berger et al. suggest how a primitive-looking species like H. naledi survived more recently than many would have predicted, while Hawks et al. describe the discovery of more H. naledi fossils from a separate chamber in the same cave system. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.24231.002
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Hgm Dirks
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia.,Evolutionary Studies Institute and the National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa
| | - Eric M Roberts
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia.,Evolutionary Studies Institute and the National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa
| | | | - Jan D Kramers
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - John Hawks
- Evolutionary Studies Institute and the National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa.,Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, United States
| | - Anthony Dosseto
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia
| | - Mathieu Duval
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith University, Nathan, Australia.,Geochronology, Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), Burgos, Spain
| | - Marina Elliott
- Evolutionary Studies Institute and the National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa
| | - Mary Evans
- School of Geosciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa
| | - Rainer Grün
- Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution, Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith University, Nathan, Australia.,Research School of Earth Sciences, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - John Hellstrom
- School of Earth Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Andy Ir Herries
- The Australian Archaeomagnetism Laboratory, Department of Archaeology and History, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Renaud Joannes-Boyau
- Geoarchaeology and Archaeometry Research Group, Department of GeoScience, Southern Cross University, Lismore, Australia
| | - Tebogo V Makhubela
- Department of Geology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Christa J Placzek
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Jessie Robbins
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Carl Spandler
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Jelle Wiersma
- Department of Geoscience, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Jon Woodhead
- School of Earth Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Lee R Berger
- Evolutionary Studies Institute and the National Centre for Excellence in PalaeoSciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Wits, South Africa
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Berger LR, Hawks J, Dirks PHGM, Elliott M, Roberts EM. Homo naledi and Pleistocene hominin evolution in subequatorial Africa. eLife 2017; 6:e24234. [PMID: 28483041 PMCID: PMC5423770 DOI: 10.7554/elife.24234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2016] [Accepted: 04/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
New discoveries and dating of fossil remains from the Rising Star cave system, Cradle of Humankind, South Africa, have strong implications for our understanding of Pleistocene human evolution in Africa. Direct dating of Homo naledi fossils from the Dinaledi Chamber (Berger et al., 2015) shows that they were deposited between about 236 ka and 335 ka (Dirks et al., 2017), placing H. naledi in the later Middle Pleistocene. Hawks and colleagues (Hawks et al., 2017) report the discovery of a second chamber within the Rising Star system (Dirks et al., 2015) that contains H. naledi remains. Previously, only large-brained modern humans or their close relatives had been demonstrated to exist at this late time in Africa, but the fossil evidence for any hominins in subequatorial Africa was very sparse. It is now evident that a diversity of hominin lineages existed in this region, with some divergent lineages contributing DNA to living humans and at least H. naledi representing a survivor from the earliest stages of diversification within Homo. The existence of a diverse array of hominins in subequatorial comports with our present knowledge of diversity across other savanna-adapted species, as well as with palaeoclimate and paleoenvironmental data. H. naledi casts the fossil and archaeological records into a new light, as we cannot exclude that this lineage was responsible for the production of Acheulean or Middle Stone Age tool industries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lee R Berger
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - John Hawks
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin, Madison, United States
| | - Paul HGM Dirks
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Department of Geosciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
| | - Marina Elliott
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Eric M Roberts
- Evolutionary Studies Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
- Department of Geosciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Australia
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Ao H, Liu CR, Roberts AP, Zhang P, Xu X. An updated age for the Xujiayao hominin from the Nihewan Basin, North China: Implications for Middle Pleistocene human evolution in East Asia. J Hum Evol 2017; 106:54-65. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2017.01.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2016] [Revised: 01/23/2017] [Accepted: 01/26/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Kivisild T. The study of human Y chromosome variation through ancient DNA. Hum Genet 2017; 136:529-546. [PMID: 28260210 PMCID: PMC5418327 DOI: 10.1007/s00439-017-1773-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2017] [Accepted: 02/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
High throughput sequencing methods have completely transformed the study of human Y chromosome variation by offering a genome-scale view on genetic variation retrieved from ancient human remains in context of a growing number of high coverage whole Y chromosome sequence data from living populations from across the world. The ancient Y chromosome sequences are providing us the first exciting glimpses into the past variation of male-specific compartment of the genome and the opportunity to evaluate models based on previously made inferences from patterns of genetic variation in living populations. Analyses of the ancient Y chromosome sequences are challenging not only because of issues generally related to ancient DNA work, such as DNA damage-induced mutations and low content of endogenous DNA in most human remains, but also because of specific properties of the Y chromosome, such as its highly repetitive nature and high homology with the X chromosome. Shotgun sequencing of uniquely mapping regions of the Y chromosomes to sufficiently high coverage is still challenging and costly in poorly preserved samples. To increase the coverage of specific target SNPs capture-based methods have been developed and used in recent years to generate Y chromosome sequence data from hundreds of prehistoric skeletal remains. Besides the prospects of testing directly as how much genetic change in a given time period has accompanied changes in material culture the sequencing of ancient Y chromosomes allows us also to better understand the rate at which mutations accumulate and get fixed over time. This review considers genome-scale evidence on ancient Y chromosome diversity that has recently started to accumulate in geographic areas favourable to DNA preservation. More specifically the review focuses on examples of regional continuity and change of the Y chromosome haplogroups in North Eurasia and in the New World.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toomas Kivisild
- Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 1QH, UK.
- Estonian Biocentre, 51010, Tartu, Estonia.
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Torres V, Herane MI, Costa A, Martin JP, Troielli P. Refining the ideas of "ethnic" skin. An Bras Dermatol 2017; 92:221-225. [PMID: 28538883 PMCID: PMC5429109 DOI: 10.1590/abd1806-4841.20174846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2015] [Accepted: 02/20/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Skin disease occur worldwide, affecting people of all nationalities and all skin types. These diseases may have a genetic component and may manifest differently in specific population groups; however, there has been little study on this aspect. If population-based differences exist, it is reasonable to assume that understanding these differences may optimize treatment. While there is a relative paucity of information about similarities and differences in skin diseases around the world, the knowledge-base is expanding. One challenge in understanding population-based variations is posed by terminology used in the literature: including ethnic skin, Hispanic skin, Asian skin, and skin of color. As will be discussed in this article, we recommend that the first three descriptors are no longer used in dermatology because they refer to nonspecific groups of people. In contrast, "skin of color" may be used - perhaps with further refinements in the future - as a term that relates to skin biology and provides relevant information to dermatologists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vicente Torres
- Department of Dermatology, Juarez Hospital – Mexico City,
Mexico
| | | | - Adilson Costa
- Department of Dermatology, Emory University School of Medicine,
Atlanta, GA USA
| | - Jaime Piquero Martin
- Department of Dermatology, Universidad Central de Venezuela –
Caracas, Venezuela
| | - Patricia Troielli
- Department of Dermatology, University of Buenos Aires – Buenos
Aires, Argentina
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Michel V, Valladas H, Shen G, Wang W, Zhao JX, Shen CC, Valensi P, Bae CJ. The earliest modern Homo sapiens in China? J Hum Evol 2016; 101:101-104. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.07.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Revised: 07/21/2016] [Accepted: 07/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Laird MF, Holton NE, Scott JE, Franciscus RG, Marshall SD, Southard TE. Spatial determinants of the mandibular curve of Spee in modern and archaic Homo. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2016; 161:226-36. [PMID: 27346254 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2015] [Revised: 03/10/2016] [Accepted: 05/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES The curve of Spee (COS) is a mesio-distally curved alignment of the canine through distal molar cusp tips in certain mammals including modern humans and some fossil hominins. In humans, the alignment varies from concave to flat, and previous studies have suggested that this difference reflects craniofacial morphology, including the degree of alveolar prognathism. However, the relationship between prognathism and concavity of the COS has not been tested in craniofacially variant populations. We tested the hypothesis that greater alveolar prognathism covaries with a flatter COS in African-American and European-American populations. We further examined this relationship in fossil Homo including Homo neanderthalensis and early anatomically modern Homo sapiens, which are expected to extend the amount of variation in the COS from the extant sample. METHODS AND MATERIALS These hypotheses were tested using three-dimensional geometric morphometrics. Landmarks were recorded from the skulls of 166 African-Americans, 123 European-Americans, and 10 fossil hominin mandible casts. Landmarks were subjected to generalized Procrustes analysis, principal components analysis, and two-block partial least squares analysis. RESULTS We documented covariation between the COS and alveolar prognathism such that relatively prognathic individuals have a flatter COS. Mandibular data from the fossil hominin taxa generally confirm and extend this correlation across a greater range of facial size and morphology in Homo. DISCUSSION Our results suggest that the magnitude of the COS is related to a suite of features associated with alveolar prognathism in modern humans and across anthropoids. We also discuss the implications for spatial interactions between the dental arches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Myra F Laird
- Department of Anthropology, Center for the Study of Human Origins, New York University, New York, New York, 10003. .,New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology (NYCEP), New York, New York.
| | - Nathan E Holton
- Department of Anthropology, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242.,Department of Orthodontics, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242
| | - Jill E Scott
- Department of Anthropology, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242.,Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Metropolitan State University of Denver, Colorado, 80217
| | - Robert G Franciscus
- Department of Anthropology, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242.,Department of Orthodontics, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242
| | - Steven D Marshall
- Department of Orthodontics, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242
| | - Thomas E Southard
- Department of Orthodontics, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242
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Carotenuto F, Tsikaridze N, Rook L, Lordkipanidze D, Longo L, Condemi S, Raia P. Venturing out safely: The biogeography of Homo erectus dispersal out of Africa. J Hum Evol 2016; 95:1-12. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Revised: 02/11/2016] [Accepted: 02/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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44
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Variation in the nasal cavity of baboon hybrids with implications for late Pleistocene hominins. J Hum Evol 2016; 94:134-45. [PMID: 27178465 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2016.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2014] [Revised: 08/03/2015] [Accepted: 02/22/2016] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Hybridization is increasingly proving to be an important force shaping human evolution. Comparisons of both ancient and modern genomes have provided support for a complex evolutionary scenario over the past million years, with evidence for multiple incidents of gene exchange. However, to date, genetic evidence is still limited in its ability to pinpoint the precise time and place of ancient admixture. For that we must rely on evidence of admixture from the skeleton. The research presented here builds on previous work on the crania of baboon hybrids, focusing on the nasal cavity of olive baboons, yellow baboons, and first generation (F1) hybrids. The nasal cavity is a particularly important anatomical region for study, given the clear differentiation of this feature in Neanderthals relative to their contemporaries, and therefore it is a feature that will likely differ in a distinctive manner in hybrids of these taxa. Metric data consist of 45 linear, area, and volume measurements taken from CT scans of known-pedigree baboon crania. Results indicate that there is clear evidence for differences among the nasal cavities of the parental taxa and their F1 hybrids, including a greater degree of sexual dimorphism in the hybrids. There is also some evidence for transgressive phenotypes in individual F1 animals. The greatest amount of shape variation occurs in the anterior bony cavity, the choana, and the mid-nasopharynx. Extrapolating our results to the fossil record, we would expect F1 hybrid fossils to have larger nasal cavities, on average, than either parental taxon, with overall nasal cavity shape showing the most profound changes in regions that are distinct between the parental taxa (e.g., anterior nasal cavity). We also expect size and shape differences to be more pronounced in male F1 hybrids than in females. Because of pronounced anterior nasal cavity differences between Neanderthals and their contemporaries, we suggest that this model might be effective for examining the fossil record of late Pleistocene contact.
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López S, van Dorp L, Hellenthal G. Human Dispersal Out of Africa: A Lasting Debate. Evol Bioinform Online 2016; 11:57-68. [PMID: 27127403 PMCID: PMC4844272 DOI: 10.4137/ebo.s33489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2015] [Revised: 02/21/2016] [Accepted: 02/21/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Unraveling the first migrations of anatomically modern humans out of Africa has invoked great interest among researchers from a wide range of disciplines. Available fossil, archeological, and climatic data offer many hypotheses, and as such genetics, with the advent of genome-wide genotyping and sequencing techniques and an increase in the availability of ancient samples, offers another important tool for testing theories relating to our own history. In this review, we report the ongoing debates regarding how and when our ancestors left Africa, how many waves of dispersal there were and what geographical routes were taken. We explore the validity of each, using current genetic literature coupled with some of the key archeological findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saioa López
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
| | - Lucy van Dorp
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
- Centre for Mathematics and Physics in the Life Sciences and Experimental Biology (CoMPLEX), University College London, London, UK
| | - Garrett Hellenthal
- Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK
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Backwell L, d’Errico F. Osseous Projectile Weaponry from Early to Late Middle Stone Age Africa. OSSEOUS PROJECTILE WEAPONRY 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-94-024-0899-7_2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
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Grine FE. The Late Quaternary Hominins of Africa: The Skeletal Evidence from MIS 6-2. AFRICA FROM MIS 6-2 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-94-017-7520-5_17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Curnoe D, Ji X, Liu W, Bao Z, Taçon PSC, Ren L. A Hominin Femur with Archaic Affinities from the Late Pleistocene of Southwest China. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0143332. [PMID: 26678851 PMCID: PMC4683062 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0143332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2015] [Accepted: 11/03/2015] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
The number of Late Pleistocene hominin species and the timing of their extinction are issues receiving renewed attention following genomic evidence for interbreeding between the ancestors of some living humans and archaic taxa. Yet, major gaps in the fossil record and uncertainties surrounding the age of key fossils have meant that these questions remain poorly understood. Here we describe and compare a highly unusual femur from Late Pleistocene sediments at Maludong (Yunnan), Southwest China, recovered along with cranial remains that exhibit a mixture of anatomically modern human and archaic traits. Our studies show that the Maludong femur has affinities to archaic hominins, especially Lower Pleistocene femora. However, the scarcity of later Middle and Late Pleistocene archaic remains in East Asia makes an assessment of systematically relevant character states difficult, warranting caution in assigning the specimen to a species at this time. The Maludong fossil probably samples an archaic population that survived until around 14,000 years ago in the biogeographically complex region of Southwest China.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darren Curnoe
- Palaeontology, Geobiology and Earth Archives Research Centre, School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- * E-mail: (DC); (XJ)
| | - Xueping Ji
- Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Kunming, Yunnan, China
- * E-mail: (DC); (XJ)
| | - Wu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Zhende Bao
- Mengzi Institute of Cultural Relics, Mengzi, Yunnan, China
| | - Paul S. C. Taçon
- Place, Evolution and Rock Art Heritage Unit, School of Humanities, Gold Coast Campus, Griffith University, Queensland, Australia
| | - Liang Ren
- Mengzi Institute of Cultural Relics, Mengzi, Yunnan, China
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Ontogeny of the maxilla in Neanderthals and their ancestors. Nat Commun 2015; 6:8996. [PMID: 26639346 PMCID: PMC4686851 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2015] [Accepted: 10/23/2015] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Neanderthals had large and projecting (prognathic) faces similar to those of their putative ancestors from Sima de los Huesos (SH) and different from the retracted modern human face. When such differences arose during development and the morphogenetic modifications involved are unknown. We show that maxillary growth remodelling (bone formation and resorption) of the Devil's Tower (Gibraltar 2) and La Quina 18 Neanderthals and four SH hominins, all sub-adults, show extensive bone deposition, whereas in modern humans extensive osteoclastic bone resorption is found in the same regions. This morphogenetic difference is evident by ∼5 years of age. Modern human faces are distinct from those of the Neanderthal and SH fossils in part because their postnatal growth processes differ markedly. The growth remodelling identified in these fossil hominins is shared with Australopithecus and early Homo but not with modern humans suggesting that the modern human face is developmentally derived. Unlike modern humans, Neanderthals had large and projecting faces. Here, the authors show that the maxilla of modern humans is distinct from those of the Neanderthal and Middle Pleistocene hominins from Sima de los Huesos because their growth processes differ markedly during the postnatal period.
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Tassi F, Ghirotto S, Mezzavilla M, Vilaça ST, De Santi L, Barbujani G. Early modern human dispersal from Africa: genomic evidence for multiple waves of migration. INVESTIGATIVE GENETICS 2015; 6:13. [PMID: 26550467 PMCID: PMC4636834 DOI: 10.1186/s13323-015-0030-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2015] [Accepted: 10/27/2015] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Background Anthropological and genetic data agree in indicating the African continent as the main place of origin for anatomically modern humans. However, it is unclear whether early modern humans left Africa through a single, major process, dispersing simultaneously over Asia and Europe, or in two main waves, first through the Arab Peninsula into southern Asia and Oceania, and later through a northern route crossing the Levant. Results Here, we show that accurate genomic estimates of the divergence times between European and African populations are more recent than those between Australo-Melanesia and Africa and incompatible with the effects of a single dispersal. This difference cannot possibly be accounted for by the effects of either hybridization with archaic human forms in Australo-Melanesia or back migration from Europe into Africa. Furthermore, in several populations of Asia we found evidence for relatively recent genetic admixture events, which could have obscured the signatures of the earliest processes. Conclusions We conclude that the hypothesis of a single major human dispersal from Africa appears hardly compatible with the observed historical and geographical patterns of genome diversity and that Australo-Melanesian populations seem still to retain a genomic signature of a more ancient divergence from Africa Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13323-015-0030-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Tassi
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnologies, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Silvia Ghirotto
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnologies, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Massimo Mezzavilla
- Institute for Maternal and Child Health-IRCCS "BurloGarofolo", University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Sibelle Torres Vilaça
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnologies, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.,Present Address: Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lisa De Santi
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnologies, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
| | - Guido Barbujani
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnologies, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
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