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Neanderthal lineages excavated from modern human genomes

By Guest PostFebruary 8, 2014Sciencearchaic dna sequences, benjamin vernot, clare mclean, croatia, DNA, east asia, Europe, evolutionary anthropology, fossil free, genomes project, Germany, human evolution, human populations, joshua akey, joshua m akey, max planck institute, modern human genomes, neanderthal dna, neanderthal lineages, neanderthal museum, non african descent, paleogenetics laboratory, population geneticists, scientist, sequencing data, svante pääbo, university of washington

A substantial fraction of the Neanderthal genome persists in modern human populations. A new approach applied to analyzing whole-genome sequencing data from 665 people from Europe and East Asia shows that more than 20 percent of the Neanderthal genome survives in the DNA of this contemporary group, whose genetic information is part of the 1,000 Genomes Project.

Previous research proposes that someone of non-African descent may have inherited approximately 1 percent to 3 percent of his or her genome from Neanderthal ancestors. These archaic DNA sequences can vary from one person to another and were aggregated in the present study to determine the extent of the Neanderthal genome remaining in the study group as a whole. The findings are a start to identifying the location of specific pieces of Neanderthal DNA in modern humans and a beginning to creating a collection of Neanderthal lineages surviving in present-day human populations. (more…)

Dogs likely originated in Europe more than 18,000 years ago, UCLA biologists report

By Guest PostNovember 16, 2013Nature, Scienceancient dog fossil, ancient hunter, carnivore, co evolutionary process, coyotes, daniel greenfield, dog, dog like animals, dogs from europe, domestic dogs, druid peak, east asia, Europe, european hunter, european wolves, evolutionary biology, finland, fossil, genetic analysis, genetic data, illinois, klaus koepfli, koster archaeological site, late pleistocene, middle east, middle east origin, migration, mitochondrial dna, modern dogs, North America, olaf thalmann, old world, origin, proximity to humans, robert wayne, species, two wolves, ucla biologist, university of turku, western russia, wolf like animals, yellowstone national park

Wolves likely were domesticated by European hunter–gatherers more than 18,000 years ago and gradually evolved into dogs that became household pets, UCLA life scientists report.

“We found that instead of recent wolves being closest to domestic dogs, ancient European wolves were directly related to them,” said Robert Wayne, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology in UCLA’s College of Letters and Science and senior author of the research. “This brings the genetic record into agreement with the archaeological record. Europe is where the oldest dogs are found.” (more…)

Study Offers New Insights on Invasive Fly Threatening U.S. Fruit Crops

By Guest PostMarch 19, 2013Natureblackberry, d suzukii, drosophila suzukii, dylan kraus, east asia, eastern us, eggs, female flies, gina fernandez, hannah burrack, invasive, maturity, north Carolina, raspberry crops, research, spotted wing, state university, taylor spivey, united states, vinegar fly

Humans aren’t the only species with a sweet tooth. Research from North Carolina State University shows that the invasive spotted-wing vinegar fly (Drosophila suzukii) also prefers sweet, soft fruit – giving us new insight into a species that has spread across the United States over the past four years and threatens to cause hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to U.S. fruit crops.

“Because we know that D. suzukii prefers softer, sweeter fruit, we can focus our research efforts into which wild fruits may serve as reservoirs for this species and help identify new crops that might be at risk,” says Dr. Hannah Burrack, an assistant professor of entomology at NC State and lead author of a paper on the research. “These findings may also be a starting point for plant breeders interested in developing new fruit varieties that are more resistant to D. suzukii.” (more…)

UTM Study Raises Questions About When and Where Soybeans Were Domesticated

By Guest PostNovember 21, 2011Scienceagriculture, asia, crops, culinary, east asia, edamame, Environment, gary crawford, gyoung ah lee, human relationship, Japan, korea, legume, miso soup, northern china, pre industrial, root of soybean domestication, soybeans, tempeh, tofu, tonnage harvested, university of oregon, university of toronto, villages

If you like tofu, tempeh, edamame or miso soup, you’re a fan of soybeans. But the significance of this legume goes far beyond a few culinary treats — soybeans rank seventh among world crops for tonnage harvested.

Now, a new study led by researchers at the University of Toronto Mississauga and the University of Oregon gets at the root of soybean domestication in Asia, and challenges many of the long-held beliefs about when and where humans first began to domesticate this plant — and specifically, increase its seed size. (more…)

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Neanderthal lineages excavated from modern human genomes

Dogs likely originated in Europe more than 18,000 years ago, UCLA biologists report

Study Offers New Insights on Invasive Fly Threatening U.S. Fruit Crops

UTM Study Raises Questions About When and Where Soybeans Were Domesticated