Part 2: To Aotearoa
Human migrations across the Pacific to New Zealand
The modern human lineage originated in Africa less than 200,000 years ago
Mitochondrial Eve
Homo erectus
Africa
Offspring cell
Mitochondrial DNA suggests migrations out of Africa began around 65,000 years ago
40,000
https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/
By sequencing whole genomes we can see the genetic signatures of our ancestors
An Aboriginal Australian Genome Reveals Separate Human Dispersals into Asia Morten Rasmussen, Eske Willerslev and colleagues, University of Copenhagen, Denmark Science 2011; Vol. 334 pages 94-98
40,000
60-75,000
150,000
Chinese
Whom did Homo sapiens meet as they spread through Europe and Asia?
A draft sequence of the Neandertal genome Svante Pbo, Richard Green and colleagues, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany Science 2010; Vol. 328 pages 710-722
African
European Chinese Melanesian
Interbreeding (2%)
Neanderthal
Genetic history of an archaic hominin group from Denisova Cave in Siberia David Reich, Svante Pbo and colleagues, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and Harvard University, USA Nature Vol 468, 23/30 December 2010
Melanesian Neanderthal
Interbreeding
Denisovan
Neanderthal Denisovan
150,000
Our recent African origin means our racial characteristics evolved only recently
60-75,000
Blue eyes result from a single genetic change less than 10,000 years ago
When you look at the underlying genetic variation, we are much more similar than we appear on the surface
0.1% variation
Africa
Asia
Europe
Differences between ethnic groups are minor compared to differences among people overall
Y chromosome
Mitochondrial DNA
Thanks to Azra Moeed, Terry Burrell, Barbara Mavor, and Glenda Lewis for assistance with preparing this presentation
Produced by Hilary Miller in association with the Allan Wilson Centre for Molecular Ecology and Evolution
hilary.miller10@gmail.com www.allanwilsoncentre.ac.nz
Photo credits
Slide 3: Science Photo Library Slide 4: MacMillan Publishers Slides 6, 7: Science Photo Library Slide 9: Univ. of California Museum of Paleontology (http://evolution.berkeley.edu) Slide 10: Blank map from Wikimedia Commons (Author Crates) Slide 11: Wikimedia Commons (Courtesy: National Human Genome Research Institute) Slide 12: Constructed with information from National Genographic maps and the Genographic project Slide 14: Science Photo Library Slide 15: iStockphoto Slides 18-20: Science Photo Library Slide 21: Science Magazine, American Association for the Advancement of Science Slides 22, 24: Science Photo library Slide 25: Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology Slide 28: Science Photo Library Slide 29: TRANZ International Image Library Ltd Slide 31: Science Photo Library Slide 32, 33, 35: TRANZ International Image Library Ltd Slide 33: Wikimedia Commons (Author: NordNordWest) Slide 34: Emmanuelle Bournay, UNEP/GRID-Arendal Slide 38: Constructed with information from National Genographic maps and the Genographic project