2023-06-08 10:49:26
MADRID, 8 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
Some Neanderthal genes are responsible for certain traits in modern humans, including several with a significant influence on the immune system.
Overall, though, the study shows that modern human genes are winning over succeeding generations, reveals a new study published in eLife.
A multi-institutional research team has developed a new set of computational genetic tools to address the genetic effects of interbreeding between humans of non-African descent and Neanderthals that took place about 50,000 years ago. (The study applies only to the descendants of those who emigrated from Africa before the Neanderthals went extinct, and in particular to those of European descent.)
“Interestingly, we found that several of the identified genes involved in the immune, metabolic, and developmental systems of modern humans could have influenced human evolution after the migration of ancestors out of Africa”said it’s a statement Study co-author April (Xinzhu) Wei, an assistant professor of computational biology in Cornell University’s College of Arts and Sciences. “We have made our custom software available for free download and use by anyone interested in further research.”
Using a vast dataset from the UK Biobank consisting of genetic and trait information from nearly 300,000 Britons of non-African descent, the researchers analyzed more than 235,000 genetic variants that probably originated in Neanderthals. They found that 4,303 of those DNA differences play important roles in modern humans, influencing 47 different genetic traits, such as how quickly someone can burn calories or a person’s natural immune resistance to certain diseases.
Unlike previous studies that could not completely exclude modern human variant genes, the new study took advantage of more precise statistical methods. to focus on variants attributable to Neanderthal genes.
While the study used a dataset of almost exclusively white people living in the UK, the new computational methods developed by the team could offer a way forward for drawing evolutionary information from other large databases. to delve into the genetic influences of archaic humans on modern humans.
“For scientists studying human evolution interested in understanding how interbreeding with archaic humans tens of thousands of years ago still shapes the biology of many present-day humans, this study may fill in some of those blanks,” said the researcher. Principal Sriram Sankararaman, associate professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). “More generally, our findings may also provide new insights for evolutionary biologists looking at how the echoes of these kinds of events can have both beneficial and detrimental consequences.”
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