Who got there first, the Denisovans or Neanderthals? Cave DNA reveals human timeline

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-06-24 01:00

Australia; NSW

The entrance to Denisova Cave. Credit Dr. Richard G. Roberts

DNA extracted from the Denisova cave in Russia, has been used by Australian and international researchers to try and settle the debate about who occupied the important archaeological site first, the namesake Denisovans or the Neanderthals. The team collected 700 sediment samples and found the oldest human DNA was Denisovan, dating back to between 250,000 and 170,000 years ago. The oldest Neanderthal DNA was from towards the end of this period. The authors suggest that as the climate changed, different humans and animal inhabitants came and went from the cave. Denisovans and Neanderthals may have occupied the site repeatedly, possibly until around 45,000 years ago, when the authors detect modern human mitochondrial DNA for the first time in the sediments.

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From: Springer Nature

The occupation of the Denisova Cave

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Denisovans may have predated Neanderthals at Denisova Cave in Russia, reveals a paper published in Nature this week. The study provides a timeline of occupation of this important archaeological site that deepens our understanding of the human groups living in Eurasia during the last Ice Age.

Previous analyses of ancient DNA extracted from fossils found in Denisova Cave revealed that it was inhabited by Neanderthals, Denisovans and a hybrid of the two. However, fossilized remains are scarce and so the timings and orders of these occupancies have been unclear. To solve this problem, Elena Zavala and colleagues collected more than 700 sediment samples, representing a time transect from 300,000 to 20,000 years ago, from which they were able to extract DNA, which is thought to originate from organic material within the sediment (for example, microscopic fragments of human and animal remains). Hominin mitochondrial DNA was recovered from 175 of these samples. The oldest hominin DNA, which is associated with Palaeolithic stone tools that were dated to between 250,000 and 170,000 years ago, is of Denisovan origin, whereas the oldest Neanderthal DNA was from towards the end of this period.

Animal mitochondrial DNA was detected in 685 of the sediment samples, providing further context. Alongside multiple turnovers in hominin mitochondrial DNA, changes were also noted in the composition of animal mitochondrial DNA (members of dog, bear and horse families, for example). The authors suggest that as the climate changed, different hominins and animal inhabitants came and went. Denisovans and Neanderthals may have occupied the site repeatedly, possibly until around 45,000 years ago, when the authors detect modern human mitochondrial DNA for the first time in the sediments. No modern human fossils have been found in the Denisova Cave, so the study also highlights the value of sedimentary analyses to help to elucidate the human evolutionary story.

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Journal/
conference: Nature

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of Wollongong, ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany

Funder: This project was funded by the Max Planck Society, the European Research Council (grant agreement no. 694707 to S.P.) and the Australian Research Council (fellowships FT150100138 to Z.J., FT140100384 to B.L. and FL130100116 to R.G.R.). K.O. was supported by an Australian Government Research Training Program Award. M.V.S., M.B.K. and A.P.D. were supported by RFBR, project no. 20-29-01011. V.S. acknowledges funding from the Alon Fellowship.

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