6,000-Year-Old Skeletons Have Distinctive DNA With No Link To Modern Humans
Earlier studies have revealed that two lineages existed - northern Native American and southern Native American. It developed when people started to move south after first arriving on the continent from Siberia. The southern Native American is further divided into at least three sub-lineages.
However, scientists have yet to find the exact time and other details when the first people would have moved from Central America to South America.
"We show that the hunter-gatherer population from the Altiplano dated to around 6000 yr B.P. lack the genetic ancestry related to the Clovis-associated Anzick-1 genome and to ancient California Channel Island individuals," the study noted.
"The analysed Preceramic individuals from Colombia do not share distinct affinity with any ancient or modern-day population from Central and South America studied to date," the study added.
"Colombia_Checua_6000BP can thus be modeled as a previously undescribed distinct lineage deriving from the radiation event that gave rise to multiple populations across South America during its initial settlement," it mentioned.
The study author, Andrea Casas Vargas, a researcher at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, told CNN on Wednesday (June 11) that the research team was "very surprised" with the findings.
"We did not expect to find a lineage that had not been reported in other populations," Vargas added.
Kim-Louise Krettek, lead author and a PhD student at the Senckenberg Center for Human Evolution in Germany, said, as quoted by Express UK, that this area is key to understanding "how the Americas were populated".
"It was the land bridge between North and South America and the meeting point of three major cultural regions: Mesoamerica, Amazonia, and the Andes." Krettek added.
The study is very important, Vargas said, adding that it is the first to sequence complete genomes in ancient samples from Colombia.
Vargas said that the results raise questions "as to where they came from and why they disappeared.
"We are not certain what happened at that time that caused their disappearance, whether it was due to environmental changes, or if they were replaced by other population groups," she said, further adding that more research will provide some answers, hopefully.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NDTV
a day ago
- NDTV
Radioactive Wasp Nest Discovered At Former US Nuclear Facility
A highly radioactive wasp nest has been discovered at the Savannah River Site, a former Cold War-era nuclear weapons facility in South Carolina. The find was made during a routine inspection on July 3, according to officials from the US Department of Energy (DOE), as reported by CNN. The nest was located on a post near massive storage tanks containing liquid nuclear waste. Radiation levels in the nest were reportedly ten times higher than the limit allowed by federal safety regulations. Despite the alarming reading, DOE officials emphasised that the tanks were not leaking and assured the public that there is no current risk to workers or the surrounding community. Workers at a site destroyed the radioactive wasp nest by initially spraying it with insect killer, and then they carefully removed the nest and threw it away as radioactive waste. During the inspection, no wasps were found. Officials believe that the nest was contaminated by onsite legacy radioactive contamination. Even though the site is no longer fully active, some radiation still remains in the soil, dust, or surfaces since the time it was fully operational and was making parts for nuclear bombs. Tom Clements, the executive director of the group, told NBC Connecticut that knowing the type of wasp nest is a must because some wasps build nests from dirt, while others use different materials. This will help them figure out where the radioactive material came from. In a text message, Mr Clements said, "I'm as mad as a hornet that SRS didn't explain where the radioactive waste came from or if there's some kind of leak from the waste tanks that the public should know about." The Savannah River Site was opened in the early 1950s during a tension between the US and the Soviet Union. Initially, the site was used to produce plutonium pits, but now it focuses on two major things: producing nuclear fuel and cleaning up the old nuclear waste and contamination left. According to the Savannah River Mission Completion, the site has created about 625 million litres of liquid nuclear waste. Workers have now been slowly reducing the amount of this waste by using evaporation, and now it is down to about 129 million litres.
United News of India
2 days ago
- United News of India
Lung cancer risk linked to what one eats, according to new study
Rome, July 31 (UNI) A new study suggests that an increased risk of lung cancer may be linked to consumption of ultraprocessed foods. Ultraprocessed foods contain ingredients 'never or rarely used in kitchens, or classes of additives whose function is to make the final product palatable or more appealing,' according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Those ingredients — found in items such as sodas, chips, packaged soups, chicken nuggets and ice cream — can include preservatives against mold or bacteria, artificial colouring, emulsifiers to stop separation and added or altered sugar, salt and fats to make food more appealing, reports CNN. People who eat the most ultraprocessed foods are 41 percent more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer than those who eat the least, even after accounting for other factors such as smoking, according to the study published Tuesday in the journal Thorax. For this study, researchers analyzed data from more than 100,000 people who completed the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey's Food Frequency Questionnaire on their dietary habits and compared the information with medical records for lung cancer diagnoses. It was found that on average, people had nearly three servings a day of ultraprocessed foods, most commonly lunch meat, diet or caffeinated soft drinks, or decaffeinated soft drinks, the study authors wrote. 'Industrial processing alters the food matrix, affecting nutrient availability and absorption, while also generating harmful contaminants,' the researchers pointed. They particularly highlighted acrolein, which can be derived from burning tobacco, wood, plastics and gasoline and from cooking fats and oils at high temperatures, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The study also mentioned that packaging materials may be part of the problem. Although the study is observational meaning that while the methods were clear and strong, the research still can't definitively prove that the foods cause lung cancer. Lung cancer is a common form of cancer, with an estimated 2.4 million new cases worldwide in 2022, according to the World Health Organization. Smoking is the main contributor to lung cancer risk, but people who don't smoke can still get it, which suggests other factors are at play, Katz said. The authors found that the association between ultra-processed food consumption and lung cancer risk was stronger among never-smokers. Often, ultraprocessed food consumption is associated with a lower diet quality, such as a higher intake of saturated fats, chemicals, salt and sugar, as well as higher calorie consumption, Katz said. These factors 'can drive inflammation –– a primary pathway in the development and progression of cancer –– and damage the microbiome, impairing immune system function,' he said This combination of excess inflammation and impaired immunity creates scenario where cancer begins, he noted. The study adds lung cancer risk to the list of reasons to avoid ultraprocessed foods and increase diet quality, Katz said. Health and diet quality improve when people eat mostly whole, unprocessed foods and largely plants such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, lentils, nuts and seeds, he added. UNI XC SS
NDTV
3 days ago
- NDTV
'Cannibal' Robot That Can Grow, Heal By Consuming Other Bots Developed
In what appears to be a scene straight out of a dystopian sci-fi movie, scientists at Columbia University in New York have developed a robot capable of growing and healing by consuming other robots. Researchers say the development marks a big step in the creation of self-sustaining machines that can lead to an entirely new dimension of autonomy for artificial intelligence. "It is possible to form machines that can grow physically and become more capable within their lifetime by consuming and recycling material from their immediate surroundings and other machines," the study published in the journal Science Advances highlighted. The so-called cannibal robot works through a process called "robot metabolism", allowing it to self-assemble and increase its performance by adding new bits, or discarded old parts that have run out of battery or no longer serve a function. The researchers showed how Truss Links -- a robotic magnet stick inspired by the Geomag toy, self-assembled into two-dimensional shapes, which could later morph into three-dimensional robots. These robots then further improved themselves by integrating new parts, effectively "growing" into more capable machines. "Truss Links can be used to build modular robots. Modular robot systems comprise multiple parts called modules, links, or cells that can self-assemble or be assembled to achieve an objective. The Truss Link is the basic building block of our modular robot system," Also Read | Japan's Toll System Crashes For 38 Hours, 24,000 Still Voluntarily Pay The Fees Though the development of self-sustaining robots is still in a nascent stage, the researchers say the creation of Truss Links is a step toward a future where robots can adapt and improvise "instead of being purpose-built with the vain hope of anticipating all use cases". "True autonomy means robots must not only think for themselves but also physically sustain themselves," Philippe Martin Wyder, lead author and researcher, said in a statement. "Just as biological life absorbs and integrates resources, these robots grow, adapt, and repair using materials from their environment or from other robots." 'What can go wrong' Reacting to the news of self-sustaining robots that might become the norm in the future, social media users were divided on their use case. "Why we need this? What is the purpose of that in our world?" wrote one user while another added: "Oh lovely, real life replicators! What can go wrong?"
