The study of Neanderthal DNA has provided valuable insights into modern humans’ genetic heritage. Many people of non-African descent have traces of Neanderthal DNA in their genomes, indicating thousands of years of interbreeding between early humans and Neanderthals.
According to a new study led by UCL researchers, humans inherited genetic material from Neanderthals that affects the shape of our noses. According to a new Communications Biology study, a gene that causes a taller nose (from top to bottom) may have resulted from natural selection as ancient humans adapted to colder climates after leaving Africa.
“In the last 15 years, since the Neanderthal genome has been sequenced, we have been able to learn that our own ancestors apparently interbred with Neanderthals, leaving us with little bits of their DNA,” said co-corresponding author Dr Kaustubh Adhikari (UCL Genetics, Evolution & Environment and The Open University). Here, we discover that some Neanderthal DNA influences the shape of our faces. This could have been beneficial to our forefathers, as it has been passed down for thousands of years.”
It has long been speculated that the shape of our noses is determined by natural selection; as our noses can help us to regulate the temperature and humidity of the air we breathe in, different-shaped noses may be better suited to different climates that our ancestors lived in.
Dr. Qing Li
The study analyzed data from over 6,000 Latin American volunteers of mixed European, Native American, and African ancestry who were recruited from Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, and Peru as part of the UCL-led CANDELA study. The researchers compared the participants’ genetic information to photographs of their faces, specifically looking at distances between points on their faces, such as the tip of the nose or the edge of the lips, to see how different facial traits were associated with the presence of different genetic markers.
The researchers discovered 33 genome regions linked to face shape, 26 of which they were able to replicate in comparisons with data from other ethnicities using participants from East Asia, Europe, and Africa.
Many people in their study with Native American ancestry (as well as others with East Asian ancestry from another cohort) had genetic material in this gene that was inherited from the Neanderthals, contributing to increased nasal height, the researchers discovered in one genome region called ATF3. They also discovered evidence of natural selection in this gene region, implying that those carrying the genetic material had an advantage.
First author Dr. Qing Li (Fudan University) said: “It has long been speculated that the shape of our noses is determined by natural selection; as our noses can help us to regulate the temperature and humidity of the air we breathe in, different shaped noses may be better suited to different climates that our ancestors lived in. The gene we have identified here may have been inherited from Neanderthals to help humans adapt to colder climates as our ancestors moved out of Africa.”
According to co-corresponding author Professor Andres Ruiz-Linares (Fudan University, UCL Genetics, Evolution & Environment, and Aix-Marseille University), “most genetic studies of human diversity have investigated the genes of Europeans; our study’s diverse sample of Latin American participants broadens the reach of genetic study findings, helping us to better understand the genetics of all humans.”
