Inside of Vindija Cave in Croatia, where three fragments of Neandertal bone were excavated. They were later sequenced, providing a first draft of the Neandertal genome. (Photo c/o Johannes Krause, MPI-EVA)

Whether we believe that Neanderthals had religion, believed in the afterlife, and buried their dead, one thing is quite clear to science – most of us have some Neanderthal in our genes:

Neanderthals are our ancestors, study finds

(Harvard University)

By Carolyn Y. Johnson, Globe Staff

In a stunning scientific feat, an international research team has deciphered the genome of long-extinct Neanderthals, revealing that they are our ancestors.

Modern humans likely interbred with Neanderthals, the scientists conclude in a paper published today — and 30,000 years after they disappeared, leaving behind bones and tools, traces of them can also be found in many of us, in our DNA.

Researchers extracted and sequenced genetic material from a pill-sized amount of crushed bones found in a cave in Croatia. Then, a Harvard geneticist led efforts to compare the ancient DNA with present-day human genomes. Not only did the team find strong support for the controversial mating theory, but they also produced a catalog of genetic mutations that set humans apart, yielding potential clues about why we succeeded while Neanderthals died off…

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