After modern humans left Africa, they encountered and interbred with Neanderthals, leaving around 2–3% Neanderthal DNA in the genomes of all people outside Africa today.
However, little was known about the genetics of the first humans to settle in Europe or the timing of their interbreeding with Neanderthals.
A new study published in Nature sheds light on these early pioneers. Researchers analyzed ancient human genomes from two key sites—Zlatý kůň in Czechia and Ilsenhöhle in Ranis, Germany.
These findings reveal important connections between the early European settlers, their Neanderthal ancestry, and a unique archaeological culture.
The skull of an individual from Zlatý kůň, dating back around 45,000 years, was previously analyzed but lacked archaeological context.
The nearby site of Ranis, associated with the Lincombian-Ranisian-Jerzmanowician (LRJ) culture, has long puzzled scientists about whether Neanderthals or modern humans created the tools found there.
In this study, researchers sequenced DNA from 13 bone fragments from Ranis and discovered that they belonged to modern humans, not Neanderthals. These remains represented at least six individuals, including a mother and daughter, as well as other relatives. One particularly well-preserved bone, called Ranis13, allowed scientists to create the highest-quality genome of any Pleistocene modern human to date.
When the team reanalyzed the genome of the Zlatý kůň individual, they found a distant genetic connection to two individuals from Ranis. This indicates that Zlatý kůň was part of the same small, interconnected population that likely traveled together and made LRJ tools.
Genetic analysis revealed that the Zlatý kůň and Ranis individuals had traits associated with dark skin, brown eyes, and dark hair, reflecting their recent African origins. Their population likely consisted of a few hundred individuals spread across a large area.
Despite coexisting with Neanderthals in Europe, the Zlatý kůň and Ranis individuals showed no evidence of recent interbreeding with them. This sets them apart from other early modern human groups, who carried more recent Neanderthal ancestry. Researchers speculate that the Zlatý kůň/Ranis population may have entered Europe by a different route or avoided regions where Neanderthals lived.
By analyzing Neanderthal DNA segments in the Ranis13 genome, researchers dated the shared Neanderthal admixture event to between 45,000 and 49,000 years ago. This suggests that around this time, a unified ancestral population of non-Africans still existed before splitting into the groups that spread across Eurasia.
“Our findings provide a clearer picture of the earliest humans who settled in Europe,” said Johannes Krause, senior author of the study. “It also shows that any modern human remains older than 50,000 years found outside Africa could not have been part of the population that interbred with Neanderthals.”
This research offers valuable insights into the lives of the first European settlers and their place in human history.
Source: Max Planck Society.
