Research paper. Olha Vynohradova (without outline)

Olha Vynohradova

Prof. Yaroslava R. Fedoriv

Academic writing course (group A-2)

11 April 2013

The part of Neanderthals in human evolution

According to paleoanthropology and evolutional biology, modern humans belong to the genus Homo, whose evolution continued during the long period of time since 3-2,5 million years ago. In the beginning of the XX century the major scheme of human evolution was the staged one, where different kinds of human were going one after another, each of which lived in its specific period of time. Australophitecus afarensis, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, and Homo neanderthalensis have been proposed as the direct ancestors of the Homo sapiens (modern human). Later, new investigations and anthropological remnants have given an opportunity to allocate new human species and subspecies. However, according to contemporary science, not all existed human species were involved in evolution–some of them were its deadlock`s branches, like Homo floresiensis or Homo rudolfiensis. Moreover, the whole genus Homo neanderthalensis is under consideration to be the part of modern human evolution. Discussion around this problem began in the middle of the XX century and widely spread through the world in the XXI century, when DNA researches emerged.

Homo neanderthalensis  is now-extinct species or subspecies of the genus Homo that originated and lived in Europe; and whose affinity with Homo sapiens is highly controversial. It is a paleoanthropological term where Homo means ‘a man’ (a person) and neanderthalensis indicates the site of the first discovery of this species–the cave upon the river Düssels Neander (Segeda 143). Neanderthals settled throughout the Europe, where archaeologists could find different anthropological and archaeological remnants of their kind. According to the Homo neanderthalensis fossils, they could be distinguished into three types that differ by time of their existence, location, and interpretation. The first one is the Earliest Neanderthals (or Eringsdorf Neanderthals) with vertically elongated face, round occiput, small superciliary ridge, and salient forehead (Sytnyk 81). This type lived in the period of time from 200 to 100 thousand years BP and considered to be prevalent in Western Europe. After them, on the territory of the Western Europe the classic type (or Shapell` Neanderthals) spread. Their defining features were elongated cranium, declivous forehead with big superciliary ridge, and broad nose (Sytnyk 84). Classic Neanderthals were living in Europe until 40 thousand years BP, slowly moving to the east. Finally, the third type of Neanderthals that lived from 40 to 27 thousand years BP, had both Neanderthal`s and Homo sapiens`s features in combination with advanced culture (Sytnyk 94). This type was common not only in the west, but also in the east of Europe. Besides Neanderthals, the archaic Homo sapiens were living on the same territory within 60-40 thousand years BP. Thereby, the question of their interaction or even interbreeding raises.  

The progress in science has allowed researchers to use new methods of investigation. Genetic method was such a novelty that deeply entrenched in anthropological practice. Considering Neanderthals and Homo sapiens fossils throughout the Europe, the DNA tests have been made in order to find the genetic connection between them. Oleksandr Sytnyk in his work Cultural anthropology: human and society origins explains the idea of DNA tests as follow:

The idea of the theory is that most of our DNA is contained in 23 pairs of chromosomes, which are located in the nuclei of our cells…We could obtain different results depending on what genome we define: nuclear or mitochondrial. The first one is changeable and consists of 3 million particles. Therefore, it could be transmitted through the male line interbreeding with female chromosomes. The mitochondrial genome consists of 16569 particles and is located inside nuclear genome. This genome could be transmitted only through the female line, retaining the stable set of chromosomes. Due to this, we can trace the single line of species development and reach the time of population origins. (Sytnyk 104)

In 2008 evolutional biologists managed to decipher mitochondrial DNA of Neanderthals. As a result, 206 distinctions accrued between Neanderthals` and Homo sapiens` DNA, that means that Neanderthal is different from modern human in 98 per cent (Zalizniak 54). The new methods of investigation bring reasonable adjustments in old researches, but such essential details like special features and time of emergence of those species on the Earth, cannot be omitted. Neanderthals emerged in Europe 200 thousand years BP, whereas Homo sapiens appeared in Africa about the same time (Segeda 157). This argument shows that those two species could not be sequential. It should be added that Neanderthals had archaic appearance and structure of the body that could be explained by severe climate of glacial Europe. Homo sapiens that were developing at the same time had delicate constitution. These two species have differences not only in their body constitution, but also in cranium capacity and the structure of facial cranium (Appendix 1). Thereby, even morphologically those two species were far from each other. On account of these findings, the majority of scientists exclude Neanderthals from the process of human evolution.

On the other hand, in 2010-2011 the group of geneticists deciphered another part of DNA, that is located in men`s cells. According to the research, it was proved that 1-4 per cent of Neanderthals` genes have some similarities with Homo sapiens nuclear genome (Zalizniak 59). The results of this investigation could be seen from the Graph 1. 

Graph 1. The approximate proportion of Neanderthal genes in the DNA of modern humans (According to Green et al. 718)

Graph 1 presents an approximate proportion of Neanderthal genes in modern human DNA due to the nuclear genome investigations. The vertical axis demonstrates the number of Neanderthals DNA fractions that are similar to the modern human`s. DNAs of three different Neanderthal remnants have been taken for this investigation: Croatia (Vindija Cave), Palestine (Skhul Cave), and France (La-Shappel-au-Sein). The horizontal axis stands for five modern humans from different countries of Eurasia whose DNAs have been taken for this investigation. It can be seen from the graph that Syrian have approximately 0,036 fractions of Neanderthal DNA or 3,6 per cent, Afghanistani – 0,026 which is 2,6 per cent, Chines have only 0,01 fractions of Neanderthal DNA or 1 per cent, Turkish – 0,019 (1,9 per cent), and French – 0,013 that corresponds to 1,3 per cent.

According to this investigation, researchers insist that a small part of Neanderthals were involved in human evolution. Such scholars also explain the approximate time of appearance of those two species on the Earth by arguing that not all human remains were found and the dating is rather controversial. In such way, the first Homo sapiens in their views were archaic ones and could be named as Homo sapiens neanderthalensis (Sytnyk 78-79). For them, being morphologically different is the evidence that those two species were sequential, even though the time of their occurrence is almost the same.

Considering these two theories on Homo neanderthalensis part in anthropogenesis, couple of adjustments should be made. It should be admitted that similarities between Neanderthals` and modern humans` DNA indicates only that they had one mutual ancestor (most likely, Homo heidelbergensis), but did not make any interbreeding.  According to anthropologists, the line divided into two parts 600 thousand years ago on the territory of Middle East when after another 400 thousand years Neanderthals settled in glacial Europe and Homo sapiens went to warm Asia (Sytnyk 103).  The simultaneous development of Neanderthals in Europe and Homo sapiens in Asia actually proves the theory. Moreover, looking at the Graph1 and the map of Eurasia, it could be discovered that the further people are from the Middle East, the greater differences between their and Neanderthals DNA occur. It should be added that the use of the term ‘Homo sapiens neanderthalensis’ is incorrect, because we do not have any human remnants with the evidence of sexual intercourses between Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.

To conclude, it could be stated that Homo neanderthalensis should be considered as the closest relative of the earliest Homo sapiens who did not involve into the evolution of modern humans. The DNA investigation proves that they had mutual ancestor and after settled in Eurasia they split into two species according to different natural environment, they inhabited. Nevertheless, due to the novelty of genetic researches in this field, investigations on the part of Neanderthals in human evolution continuing and attracts new researchers. Therefore, new results of investigation may appear any moment. 

Appendix 1

Traits	Neanderthals	Homo sapiens
Cranial capacity	Average 1490 cc (1300-1600 mostly)	1300-1500 cc
Body stature	Stubby and broad	Delicate
Occipital bone	External occipital protuberance. Occiput “bun-shaped”, occipital torus	Occiput is more rounded and arched, no torus
Contour of cranial vault	Marked flattening skull is lower, broader, and elongated	Basically convex; a higher doming in modern skulls
Mandible	Heavy, large, lacks a chin eminence	Usually has a chin eminence
Frontal bone and orbits	‘Sloping’  forehead; prominent supraorbital torus, double arched and uninterrupted superciliary ridge	Vertical frontal  superciliary ridge small or absent
Teeth	Large  taurodontic; retro molar gap behind third molar	Less  taurodontic; no retro molar gap behind third molar

According to Dave Phillips “Neanderthals are still human” Impact 323 (May 2000): n.pag. Web. 6 April 2013.

Works cited (MLA style)

Green, Richard E. et al. “A Draft Sequence of the Neanderthal Genome” Science 328.5979 (7 May 2010): 710-722. Print.

Phillips, Dave “Neanderthals are still human” Impact 323 (May 2000): n.pag. Web. 6 April 2013.

Segeda, Sergii. Anthropology. Kyiv: Lybid`, 2009. Print.

Sytnyk, Olexandr. Cultural anthropology: human and society origins. Lviv: Lviv polytechnic press, 2012. Print.

Vynohradova, Olha. “ACR paragraph. Olha Vynohradova.” Academic writing blog. 7 February 2013. Web. 8 April 2013

Vynohradova, Olha. “ACR essay. Olha Vynohradova.” Academic writing blog. 28 February 2013. Web. 8 April 2013

Zalizniak, Leonid. The ancient history of Ukraine. Kyiv: Tempora, 2012. Print.

Works cited (APA style)

Green, R. E. et al. (7 May 2010). A Draft Sequence of the Neanderthal Genome Science, 328 (5979), 710-722.

Phillips, D. (2000, May). Neanderthals are still human. Impact, 323, Retrieved from http://www.icr.org/article/neanderthals-are-still-human/.

Segeda, S. (2009). Anthropology. Kyiv: Lybid`.

Sytnyk, O. (2012). Cultural anthropology: human and society origins. Lviv: Lviv polytechnic press.

Vynohradova, O. (2013, 7 February). ACR paragraph. Olha Vynohradova. Academic writing blog, Retrieved from http://fedoriv-writing.blogspot.com/2013/02/acr-paragraph-olha-vynohradova.html.

Vynohradova, O. (2013, 28 February). ACR essay. Olha Vynohradova. Academic writing blog, Retrieved from http://fedoriv-writing.blogspot.com/2013/02/olha-vynohradova-acr-essay.html.

Zalizniak, L. (2012). The ancient history of Ukraine. Kyiv: Tempora.