The modern man interbred with other two human races

Every experts agree that Africa was the cradle of mankind.  Is not entirely clear, however, when and how spread the route of modern man (Homo sapiens) from Africa to other parts of the world.

Neanderthals man | Photo credit for Origo

Thanks for the recent archaeological and palaeoanthropology  artifacts and DNA analysis there were great leap forwards in the past years to know the history of the modern man. According to our present knowledge the modern humans probably evolved in Etiophia. The oldest anatomically modern human remains found in the Omo River Valley in 1967. Its anatomical features is the rounded skull, characteristic eyebrow bone and jaw-bone. These features have evolved in Africa, and from there spread to other parts of the world on about 60,000 years ago began a result of emigration.

Emigrations before the spread of modern humans

This 60,000 years ago emigration wasn’t the first from Africa. Because before it several species has lived outside of Africa including the Neanderthals of West Eurasia, Denisovans of the Siberian Altai Mountains and the Indonesian hobbits (Homo florsiensis) and an ancient Homo erectus as well. DNA analyzes show that common ancestor of these man species – except the Indonesian – was the Homo heidelbergensis, which developed from the Homo erectus. Comparative genomic studies have revealed that all three species of man (Modern humans, Neanderthals, Denisovans) has its own characteristic DNA sequence, which expressions their appearance. But many researchers were surprised when according to the total genomic analysis came to light that the DNA material of the modern man interbred with the DNA material of the Neanderthal and the Denisovans as well. About 2,5 % of the DNA material of the modern man who live in America and Eurasia today matches with the DNA material of the Neanderthals. In addition about 5% of DNA material of modern men who live in Australia and New Guinea today matches with the DNA material of the Denisovans.

A Winding Path | Photo by Nature Magazine ©

Interbreeding of the various human races

The most likely explanation is the reproduction each other. When modern humans left Africa, they met and interbred with the Neanderthals as the ancestors of the Austral-Asians with the Denisovans. But this is raise two questions. The first is that according to generally accepted concept of species there isn’t or very rare the interbreeding between two difference species and and the offsprings are sterile.  So, maybe would have to change or delete the taxonomic separate of species which works based of the morphology of the fossils and merge the Homo heidelbergensis, the Neanderthals and the Denisovans to the species of the Homo sapiens? And the other question is that this proved interbreeding how to change our knowledge about the moder man?

Opinion of some experts mustn’t to merge these human species. Because among them is much more the morphological diversity than within the now Homo sapiens or even the modern anthropoid apes. For the second question is still not a satisfying answer. It isn’t clear that this archaic DNA is linked to any visible property of the today modern man. And hard to decide that the regional differences of the modern man are results of the migration which happened 60,000 years ago or links to the inherited genes of the Neanderthals and the Denisovans.

Written by Ilona Kaszanyi

Tagged Anatomically modern humans, homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens, Interest, Neanderthal