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Ein Verwandter aus der Tianyuan-Höhle

Posted on 25. März 2013
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TranslationEin internationales Forscherteam um Svante Pääbo und Qiaomei Fu vom Max-Planck-Institut für evolutionäre Anthropologie in Leipzig hat das Erbgut eines frühen modernen Menschen aus der Tianyuan-Höhle bei Peking entschlüsselt. Die Analyse von DNA aus dem Zellkern und den Mitochondrien dieses Menschen zeigt, dass er eine gemeinsame Herkunft mit den Vorfahren heute lebender Asiaten und amerikanischer Ureinwohner teilt. Ein weiteres Ergebnis: Das Erbgut dieses frühen modernen Menschen enthält keinen größeren Anteil an Neandertaler- oder Denisova-DNA als das von heute in der Region lebenden Menschen. Überreste von Menschen, deren anatomische Eigenschaften denen heute Lebender ähneln, erscheinen erstmals vor etwa 40.000 bis 50.000 …

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Evidence that Afrikaners surely have non-European ancestry

Posted on 24. März 2013
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TranslationI was reviewing some literature for a blog-post-to-come and I noticed a figure in a paper I’ve long been aware of which indicates to me that Afrikaners surely have a non-trivial proportion of non-European ancestry. The paper is Population differences of two coding SNPs in pigmentation-related genes SLC24A5 and SLC45A2. It’s a forensics result. Basically SLC24A5 is useful for differentiating West Eurasians from Africans and East Asians, Amerindians, and Oceanians. But it is not too useful in distinguishing between West Eurasians. The “European” derived variant SNP within this locus is actually present at ~50% frequency as far south and east …

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Decoding Neanderthals documentary

Posted on 21. März 2013
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Translation Over 60,000 years ago, the first modern humans—people physically identical to us today—left their African homeland and entered Europe, then a bleak and inhospitable continent in the grip of the Ice Age. But when they arrived, they were not alone: the stocky, powerfully built Neanderthals had already been living there for hundred of thousands of years. So what happened when the first modern humans encountered the Neanderthals? Did we make love or war? That question has tantalized generations of scholars and seized the popular imagination. Then, in 2010, a team led by geneticist Svante Paabo announced stunning news. Not …

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Gentherapie: Neue Chance für die Medizin?

Posted on 12. Februar 2013
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Translation Nicht heilbar, bestenfalls behandelbar – das gilt auch heute noch für eine Vielzahl von Krankheiten. Doch dies könnte sich ändern: Dank der Gentherapie, der Reparatur defekter, krankheitsauslösender Gene. Ende 2012 ist in Europa das erste Gentherapie-Präparat zugelassen worden. Es soll Patienten mit einer erblichen, bisher unheilbaren Stoffwechselkrankheit helfen. Beginnt nun ein neues Zeitalter der Medizin? Glaubt man den Genmedizinern, beginnt mit dieser direkt am Erbgut des Menschen ansetzenden Technologie eine neue Ära. Eine Fülle von Syndromen und Krankheiten, die auf genetischen Fehlern beruhen, wären dann nicht mehr Schicksal, sondern nur noch ein mehr oder weniger leicht zu auszubügelnder Fehler der …

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Die genetische Spur der Phönizier

Posted on 11. Februar 2013
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Translation  Film von Pamela Caragol – Als Händler stiegen die Phönizier ab etwa 1200 v. Chr. zu einer der bedeutendsten Großmächte des Mittelmeerraums auf. Ihre herausragenden Kenntnisse als Seefahrer und begehrte Waren wie Purpur-Farbstoff, Glas und Holz bildeten den Grundstein der phönizischen Macht, die erst rund 1000 Jahre später in den punischen Kriegen von den Römern blutig gebrochen wurde. via Aufstieg und Fall der Phönizier – YouTube.

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Discovery of remains of England’s King Richard III confirmed

Posted on 6. Februar 2013
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Translation At a specially convened media conference, experts from across the University unanimously identified the remains discovered in Leicester city centre as being those of the last Plantagenet king who died in 1485. Rigorous scientific investigations confirmed the strong circumstantial evidence that the skeleton found at the site of the Grey Friars church in Leicester was indeed that of King Richard III. University of Leicester researchers have revealed a wealth of evidence — including DNA analysis, radiocarbon dating and skeletal examination — proving the identity of the skeleton. University of Leicester archaeologists co-director Richard Buckley, the lead archaeologist on the …

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China: Frühmensch-Genom entschlüsselt

Posted on 3. Februar 2013
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TranslationObwohl Vorfahren des modernen Menschen vor rund 40.000 Jahren in enger Nachbarschaft mit Neandertaler in Asien lebten, waren sie ihnen genetisch nicht ähnlicher als wir heute. Das zeigt die Analyse von Erbgut aus Gebeinen eines frühen Homo sapiens durch ein deutsch-chinesisches Forscherteam. Die fossile DNA lieferte zudem Hinweise darauf, woher die ersten asiatischen Einwanderer nach Nordamerika stammten. Etwa 200.000 bis 300.000 Jahre ist es her, dass aus einer Zwischenstufe der menschlichen Evolution – dem Homo erectus (lateinisch für aufrecht) – zwei sich parallel entwickelnde Menschenarten entstanden: der Neandertaler sowie Vorfahre des modernen Menschen, Homo sapiens. Während der Neandertaler zunächst hauptsächlich …

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The dam of ancient DNA starts to break

Posted on 27. Januar 2013
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TranslationOver the past decade or so much of the reconstruction of the human genetic past has occurred through inferences generated from variation of extant human beings. In more plain English the patterns of genetic variation of modern populations have been used to map out the patterns of the past. There are serious difficulties with these sorts of inferences. For example you generate a huge number of potential phylogenetic trees and zero in on the “most probable tree” or, the distribution of trees. But at the end of the day these inferences are only as good as your assumptions.Ancient DNA changes …

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Using Genomes to Track the Evolution of Life on Earth and Beyond

Posted on 29. Dezember 2012
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Translation   James A. Lake, Distinguished Professor of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology and Human Genetics, is a UCLA scientist whose research has focused on understanding molecular evolution at its earliest stage. In the course of his career, he has invented new techniques and often challenged current scientific views. This prestigious UCLA Faculty Research Lecture focuses on the changes in understanding evolution. Series: “UCLA Faculty Research Lectures” [4/2012] [Science] [Show ID: 23421]

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Exaggerations in the promotion of genetic ancestry testing

Posted on 25. Dezember 2012
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TranslationOne thing we have done in Genomes Unzipped is to report on what is on the market for consumers interested in getting information about their genetic data. While we have found generally positive things to say about this market, there are also many exaggerated claims especially when it comes to making inferences about an individual’s ancestors from direct-to-consumer genetics companies. An example came up last summer with a BBC radio 4 interview of Alistair Moffat of Britain’s DNA. This post will discuss the scientific basis of some of the claims made in the interview.But first of all, what is my …

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Northern Europeans and Native Americans are NOT more closely related than previously thought

Posted on 11. Dezember 2012
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TranslationA new press release is circulating on the paper which I blogged a few months ago, Ancient Admixture in Human History. Unlike the paper, the title of the press release is misleading, and unfortunately I notice that people are circulating it, and probably misunderstanding what is going on. Here’s the title and first paragraph: Native Americans and Northern Europeans More Closely Related Than Previously Thought … The reality is ta Native Americans and Northern Europeans are not more “closely related” genetically than they were before this paper. There has been no great change to standard genetic distance measures or phylogeographic …

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Most of the harmful mutations arose in the past 5,000 to 10,000 years

Posted on 30. November 2012
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TranslationA study dating the age of more than 1 million single-letter variations in the human DNA code reveals that most of these mutations are of recent origin, evolutionarily speaking. These kinds of mutations change one nucleotide — an A, C, T or G — in the DNA sequence. Over 86 percent of the harmful protein-coding mutations of this type arose in humans just during the past 5,000 to 10,000 years. Some of the remaining mutations of this nature may have no effect on people, and a few might be beneficial, according to the project researchers. While each specific mutation is …

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Recent discoveries in the Altai: Issues on the evolution of Homo sapiens

Posted on 16. November 2012
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Translation Recent discoveries in the Altai: Issues on the evolution of Homo sapiens with Professor Anatoly Derevianko, Director of the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Novosibirsk. This lecture was recorded at The Australian National University and is part of the Centre for Archaeological Research Lecture Series.. Denisova Cave, in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia, has yielded stone artefacts that have recently been associated with the fossil remains of an unknown group of hominins, referred to as ‘Denisovans’. The Palaeolithic artefacts at Denisova Cave are between 300,000 and 20,000 years in age, with Denisovan fossils found …

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The Hebrew Language is The DNA of Creation of Humans

Posted on 4. November 2012
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TranslationThe Hebrew Language is The DNA of Creation of Humans, the Universe and all things – gps1952 Source: http://www.youtube.com/user/gps1952?feature=watch

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A plea for population genetics

Posted on 16. Oktober 2012
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Translation The title here is somewhat misleading. This is not just a plea for population genetics, but for quantitative genetics as well. Genetics is a big field. But today it is defined by and large by DNA, the concrete entity in which the abstraction of the gene is embedded. Look at the header of this website, or the background to my Twitter account. Mind you, I’m pathetically informed about molecular genetics, and don’t have a strong interest in the topic! I did consider using the H.W.E. or the breeder’s equation for the header, but in the end I judged it …

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