What we can Learn from the 4 500 Year Old DNA of a Primitive African Hunter

For the first time, the complete genome of a 4 500 year-old African hunter-gatherer has been sequenced from DNA recovered from a skull recovered from Ethiopia’s highlands.

This enables a comparison to be made with the DNA from modern Africans, from which much can be learned about Africa’s early primogenitors, and especially about past migrations to and from Eurasia.

According to Dr Andrea Manica of the University of Cambridge who was responsible for the research, “Every single population for which we have data in Africa has a sizeable component of Eurasian ancestry”.

While human genomes have been extensively mapped from various parts of the world, the hot and humid climate of Africa has presented special challenges because of the fragile nature of DNA which can degenerate rapidly. The remains of Mota Man, however, were relatively well-preserved from the elements, having been deposited in a cave. The petrous bone, located just below the ear, was in particularly good condition.

Dr Manica continues, “What we were able to get is some very high quality undamaged DNA from which we could reconstruct the whole genome of the individual. We have the complete blueprint, every single gene, every single bit of information that made this individual that lived 4 500 years ago in Ethiopia”.