Posted on 07/24/2006 11:41:28 AM PDT by doc30
BERLIN — U.S. and German scientists have launched a two-year project to decipher the genetic code of the Neanderthal, a feat they hope will help deepen understanding of how modern humans' brains evolved.
Neanderthals were a species that lived in Europe and western Asia from more than 200,000 years ago to about 30,000 years ago. Scientists from Germany's Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology are teaming up a company in Connecticut to map the genome, or humans' DNA code.
“The Neanderthal is the closest relative to the modern human, and we believe that by sequencing the Neanderthal we can learn a lot,” said Michael Egholm, a vice-president at 454 Life Sciences Corp. of Branford, Conn., which will use its high-speed sequencing technology in the project.
There are no firm answers yet about how humans picked up key traits such as walking upright and developing complex language. Neanderthals are believed to have been relatively sophisticated, but lacking in humans' higher reasoning functions.
The Neanderthal project follows scientists' achievement last year in deciphering the DNA of the chimpanzee, our closest living relative. That genome map produced a long list of DNA differences between humans and chimps and some hints about which differences might be crucial.
The chimp genome “led to literally too many questions, there were 35 million differences between us and chimpanzees – that's too much to figure out,” 454 chairman Jonathan Rothberg said in a telephone interview.
“By having Neanderthal, we'll really be able to home in on the small percentage of differences that gave us higher cognitive abilities,” he said. “Neanderthal is going to open the box. It's not going to answer the question, but it's going to tell where to look to understand all of those higher cognitive functions.”
Over two years, the scientists aim to reconstruct a draft of the three-billion building blocks of the Neanderthal genome – working with fossil samples from several individuals.
They face the complication of working with 40,000-year-old samples, and of filtering out microbial DNA that contaminated them after death.
Only about 5 per cent of the DNA in the samples is actually Neanderthal DNA, Mr. Egholm said, but he and Mr. Rothberg said pilot experiments had convinced them that the decoding was feasible.
At the Max Planck Institute, the project also involves Svante Paabo, who nine years ago participated in a pioneering, though smaller-scale, DNA test on a Neanderthal sample.
That study suggested that Neanderthals and humans split from a common ancestor a half-million years ago and backed the theory that Neanderthals were an evolutionary dead end.
The new project will help in understanding how characteristics unique to humans evolved and “will also identify those genetic changes that enabled modern humans to leave Africa and rapidly spread around the world,” Mr. Paabo said in a statement Thursday.
IRNJ, I agree completely. It's like sifting the sands in Egypt to see what type of grains the ancients made their bread from! It's interesting to know, but I fail to see the importance of it. And with such other pressing problems, this "stuff" seems like a waste of time, money, and talent that could be used much more profitably elsewhere.
I do understand you sentiment. There is practical knowledge, aside from the lab techniques that need to be developed (which are of intense interest to other scientists). The comparison between the human and neanderthal genomes will reveal differences. The researchers here are particulary interested in the genetic origins of congnative ability. Once identified, then we can look to those genes (and what they encode for) when studying human congnative abilities. It may find currently unknown genetic reasons for lerning disabilities in humans. It will also give us more information on how our brains are programmed. Once that is known, we can look for tratements fo neurological ailments genetic in origin. The discoveries will be complex in nature, and likely difficult for a layperson to understand at first, but there are people well versed in these sciences and will see the applications for these results. It may seem like a small deal to you, but it will have a lasting long term effect on our understanding of ourselves.
Don't worry, this is being done in Germany.
More and more science is being done elsewhere, in part because attitudes like those we are seeing on this thread.
It is sad to see Luddites again, but their opinions are more and more prevalent every day.
A proclivity for the roast duck, with the mango salsa. : )
Once you've had Neanderthal, you never go back.
How about in the Middle East.
The Luddites were a social movement of English workers in the early 1800s who protested — often by destroying textile machines — against the changes produced by the Industrial Revolution that they felt threatened their jobs. The movement, which began in 1811, was named after a probably mythical leader, Ned Ludd. For a short time the movement was so strong that it clashed in battles with the British Army. Measures taken by the government included a mass trial at York in 1813 that resulted in many death penalties and transportations (deportment to a penal colony).http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LudditeThe English historical movement has to be seen in its context of the harsh economic climate due to the Napoleonic Wars; but since then, the term Luddite has been used to describe anyone opposed to technological progress and technological change. For the modern movement of opposition to technology, see neo-luddism.
Haven't heard much by way of 'learn a lot' from sequencing the human genome. After the genome is sequenced do they know what any part of it does or is it like a book by Derrida?
God forbid science should actually go out and explore. If they knew what they would find, then there would be no point.
Better to stay at home and just see what the Bible, Baghavaghita, Torah or other scientific text have to say about advanced genetics and similar subjects.
"But, while you see info being used to treat people with disabilities, I see it being used to protect various animal specifics, block capitalist development, give human rights to non-humans, and then maybee have certain animals that beastiality is okay with because they have the gene in etc way. Human and pigs married, half human half dogs, preserved land for rats. You can see the endless amount of BS this can lead to."
Case in point! Look at all the BS it led to in this post alone!
Sheesh - just how hyper can your hyperbole become?
"So it seems the question is more, IRINJ, why am I pushing my nose into something I as a layperson am not interested in."
I think you should have just stopped right there....
42.
Well, your post shows where sciecne ends and politics and policy begins. To learn these things is one thing. To find ways to use them is another. To find ways to manipulate society to one's preconceived notions is politics, typically of an ill-flavored variety. At that point, what has come out of science isn't what's being talked about.
Are you sure you aren't Creationist? Insults are their stock in trade. The whole tone of your post would fit right in with CR/IDers on most Crevo threads
I didn't say this was being objected to on religous grounds. I implied it looks like good science to me. When the first question about a scientific endeavor is "who is paying for this?" then we have gone from scientific exploration to minimalist incrementalism.
"Me thinks the Lady doth protest too much."
Why dont they just take a sample from Murtha?It would cut a lot of corners!
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