Lecture 19 - Neanderthal DNA evidence

Question 1

when did the AMHS-Neanderthal lines overlap, and how is their relationship determined?

Answer 1

AMHS arrived in Europe c. 45 Ka, which was 17 Ka before Neanderthals went extinct.

studied through Mousterian tool industry and faunal evidence

Question 2

who was the Lapedo child?

Answer 2

• possible hybrid fossil
• discovered in Lagar Velho, Portugal
• from 24.5Ka
• no DNA discovered

Question 3

what are reasons that support that the Lapedo child was a hybrid?

Answer 3

• Iberian location
• chin but heavy built

Question 4

what are reasons that does not support that the Lapedo child was a hybrid?

Answer 4

• later in time than predicted Neanderthal extinction
• immature individual

Question 5

what has recent discoveries told us about AMHS-Neanderthal relationship

Answer 5

• Neanderthal genomes show evidence of interbreeding with AMHS c. 100 Ka
• many sites: Altai mountains, Spain, Croatia

Question 6

what did they look like

what did they look like? what gene is it attributed to?

Answer 6

at least some individuals had light skin and red hair

MC1R gene

Question 8

speech?

what genetic evidence points to the possibility of speech in Neanderthal

Answer 8

FOXP2 gene (language-related)
‘AMHS form’ of the gene found in Neanderthals - compared to chimps

Question 9

what anatomical evidence points to the possibility of speech in Neanderthals

Answer 9

hyoid bone similar to humans (not very informative)
ear bones suggest similar range of hearing

Question 10

introgression

what does the Neanderthal genome look like in the AMHS

Answer 10

• more similar to non-African modern humans than to African modern humans
• estimated 0.5-4% gene flow from Neanderthals to modern humans

Question 11

introgression

how does mtDNA and nDNA evidence differ?

Answer 11

• it shows different stories for the relationship of Neanderthal-AMHS
• mtDNA shows that modern humans and Neanderthals are sister taxa

Question 12

introgression

is Neanderthal DNA remaining in modern humans good or bad?

Answer 12

• most DNA is non-coding suggesting that the “bad” DNA was eliminated out
• alleles remain for things such as: immune system, keratin, skin color/tanning, fertility
• also disease alleles: Type 2 diabetes, Crohn’s etc

Question 13

diet

how can dental calculus show diet trends

Answer 13

• microfossils can preserve in plaque
• can also preserve information on bacterial genetics

Question 14

diet

probable diet of Neanderthals from El Sidron, Spain

Answer 14

• veggies
• cooked starchy foods
• no meat
• yarrow & chamomile = medicine?

Question 15

diet

what are some regional differences we see in diet

Answer 15

• shifts in oral bacteria linked to meat eating
• Spy (Belgium) –> probably ate lots of meat
• El Sidron (Spain) –> Neanderthals ate almost no meat

Question 16

diet

what was the probable diet of Neanderthals in Payre, France

Answer 16

• large animals
• plants (USOs)
• fast-moving small prey (birds, fish)

Question 17

diet

what was the probable diet of Neanderthals in Gibraltar

Answer 17

marine foods
- monk seal (seasonal)
- Dolphin, fish
- 100+ mussels heated in fire

terrestrial foods: broad spectrum
- tortoise, rabbits, deer, rhina
- charred pine nuts

Question 18

diet

what the general neanderthal diet

Answer 18

• capable hunters of big game with thrust spears
• monospecific assemblages, but species vary
• both plants & meats, as needed

Question 19

fate of the neanderthals

what was the latest that the Neanderthals survived

Answer 19

survived at edges of Europe until c. 28 ka

Question 20

fate of the neanderthals

possible reasons of extinction?

Answer 20

• challenging climate that prevented large populations & thus large trade networks
• later Neanderthals are more similar to modern humans
• extinct or assimilated?