Washington | Portal
The most comprehensive genome study ever conducted on primates — a group that includes lemurs, monkeys, apes, and humans — has uncovered important genetic traits unique to humans, while also revealing the timeline for the evolutionary gap between our lineage and our lineage sharpened closest relatives, the chimpanzees and bonobos.
Researchers said Thursday they sequenced and analyzed the genomes of 233 primate species, which make up nearly half of the species alive today, and surprisingly found most exhibit greater genetic diversity, variations within a species that allowed for adaptation to mutated species Environmental conditions and other challenges are more critical than people.
“Studying the genomic diversity of primates is not only important given the current biodiversity crisis, but also holds enormous potential to improve our understanding of human diseases,” said geneticist Lukas Kuderna from the Institute of Evolutionary Biology in the Biomedical Research Park of Barcelona. Spain and Illumina, lead author of the research article published in the journal Science.
Chimpanzees and bonobos are genetically closest to humans, sharing about 98.8% of our DNA, while lemurs and lorikeets are the least closely related to humans of the primates.
The study adjusted the time frame for the divergence of the evolutionary lineage that led to modern humans and those that led to chimpanzees and bonobos, finding that this milestone occurred between 6.9 and 9 million years ago, slightly more than previously estimated .
The human lineage later acquired core traits such as bipeds, longer limbs, and larger brains through a number of species.
The study examined the origins of primates as a group. The last common ancestor of all living primates lived between 63.3 and 58.3 million years ago, during a period of remarkable evolutionary innovation after the asteroid impact 66 million years ago that doomed dinosaurs and allowed mammals to dominate .
Humancaused threats such as habitat destruction, climate change and hunting have resulted in about 60% of primate species being endangered and about 75% of primate populations in decline.
Genomic data can help identify primate species most in need of protection.