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   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Lingering effects of Neanderthal DNA found in modern humans    
      
     Date:   
         June 8, 2023   
     Source:   
         Cornell University   
     Summary:   
         Recent scientific discoveries have shown that Neanderthal genes   
         comprise some 1 to 4% of the genome of present-day humans whose   
         ancestors migrated out of Africa, but the question remained open on   
         how much those genes are still actively influencing human traits --   
         until now.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Recent scientific discoveries have shown that Neanderthal genes comprise   
   some 1 to 4% of the genome of present-day humans whose ancestors migrated   
   out of Africa, but the question remained open on how much those genes   
   are still actively influencing human traits -- until now.   
      
   A multi-institution research team including Cornell University has   
   developed a new suite of computational genetic tools to address the   
   genetic effects of interbreeding between humans of non-African ancestry   
   and Neanderthals that took place some 50,000 years ago. (The study applies   
   only to descendants of those who migrated from Africa before Neanderthals   
   died out, and in particular, those of European ancestry.)  In a study   
   published in eLife, the researchers reported that some Neanderthal genes   
   are responsible for certain traits in modern humans, including several   
   with a significant influence on the immune system. Overall, however,   
   the study shows that modern human genes are winning out over successive   
   generations.   
      
   "Interestingly, we found that several of the identified genes involved   
   in modern human immune, metabolic and developmental systems might have   
   influenced human evolution after the ancestors' migration out of Africa,"   
   said study co- lead author April (Xinzhu) Wei, an assistant professor   
   of computational biology in the 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 of nearly 300,000 Brits of   
   non-African ancestry, the researchers analyzed more than 235,000 genetic   
   variants likely to have originated from Neanderthals. They found that   
   4,303 of those differences in DNA are playing a substantial role in   
   modern humans and influencing 47 distinct genetic traits, such as how   
   fast someone can burn calories or a person's natural immune resistance   
   to certain diseases.   
      
   Unlike previous studies that could not fully exclude genes from modern   
   human variants, the new study leveraged more precise statistical methods   
   to focus on the variants attributable to Neanderthal genes.   
      
   While the study used a dataset of almost exclusively white individuals   
   living in the United Kingdom, the new computational methods developed   
   by the team could offer a path forward in gleaning evolutionary insights   
   from other large databases to delve deeper into archaic humans' genetic   
   influences 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 can fill in   
   some of those blanks," said senior investigator Sriram Sankararaman, an   
   associate professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. "More   
   broadly, our findings can also provide new insights for evolutionary   
   biologists looking at how the echoes of these types of events may   
   have both beneficial and detrimental consequences."  The other co-lead   
   author on the study is Christopher Robles, postdoctoral researcher at   
   UCLA. Additional authors are UCLA doctoral student Ali Pazokitoroudi;   
   Andrea Ganna of Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute of   
   MIT and Harvard; Alexander Gusev and Arun Durvasula of Harvard Medical   
   School; Steven Gazal of USC; Po-Ru Loh of the Broad Institute of MIT   
   and Harvard; and David Reich of Harvard University.   
      
   The research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of   
   Health and the National Science Foundation, with additional funding   
   from an Alfred P Sloan Research Fellowship and a gift from the Okawa   
   Foundation. Other authors received funding support from the Paul G. Allen   
   Frontiers Group, the John Templeton Foundation, the Howard Hughes Medical   
   Institute, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund and the Next Generation Fund at   
   the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Health_&_Medicine   
                   # Genes # Human_Biology # Medical_Topics # Immune_System   
             o Fossils_&_Ruins   
                   # Early_Humans # Human_Evolution # Evolution # Cultures   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Human_Genome_Project o Human_genome o Gene o BRCA2 o   
             Timeline_of_human_evolution o Gene_therapy o Race o Evolution   
      
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   Story Source: Materials provided by Cornell_University. Note: Content   
   may be edited for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Christopher R Robles, Xinzhu Wei, Ali Pazokitoroudi, Andrea Ganna,   
         Alexander Gusev, Arun Durvasula, Steven Gazal, Po-Ru Loh, David   
         Reich, Sriram Sankararaman. The lingering effects of Neanderthal   
         introgression on human complex traits. eLife, 2023; 12 DOI:   
         10.7554/eLife.80757   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/06/230608195656.htm   
      
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