Biomics

The reasons for the mysterious disappearance of Neanderthals about 40 thousand years ago, which occurred shortly after the appearance on their territory of people of the modern anatomical type - Cro-Magnons, occupy the minds of many generations of paleoanthropologists. The extinction of the Neanderthals lasted for 2-5 thousand years, depending on the habitat, which can be considered a fairly fast process, since before that they successfully lived in Western Europe for about 300 thousand years in the absence of any competition from other hominins. Several factors contributed to the extinction of the Neanderthals. The main one was demographic, which led to a sharp decline in the population, the cause of which was the superiority of the Cro-Magnons in intelligence and, possibly, their possession of articulate speech, which contributed to better organization in obtaining food. In addition, the Neanderthals' massive physique required more food, with Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons competing for the same resources and territories. It can be assumed that after the appearance of the Cro-Magnons, the Neanderthals lived from hand to mouth, which reduced their birth rate and increased mortality, and at a younger age compared to the CroMagnons. Climatic changes (Ice Age) affected, most likely, to a small extent, since the Neanderthals died out in the southern territories of their residence, where a sharp cooling did not occur. As one of the possible reasons for the extinction of the Neanderthals, one cannot exclude infections brought by the Cro-Magnons from Africa, to which the first were unstable. The article also discusses the social aspect: the predecessors of the Neanderthals were probably the first wave of people from Africa who came to the territory of present-day Western Europe about 600 thousand years ago; the second wave can be considered the CroMagnons, who followed the same path from Africa through the Near and Middle East. In the coming third millennium of the new era, Western Europe is already facing the third wave of migrants - Afrasians, following almost the same path. It can be assumed that due to the better birth rate among the latter and a number of other circumstances, in a few generations the autochthonous population of Europe will be replaced by newcomers, including through assimilation.

Neanderthal, Cro-Magnon, Afrasians, anatomically modern man, Homo sapiens, Homo neanderthalensis, paleoanthropology, sequencing, ancient DNA, FOXP2, extinction

1. Augusta I., Burian Z. Zhizn drevnego cheloveka. Prague. Artia. 1960. 68 p.+52 fig. with text. [The life of an ancient man] (In Russian)

2. Banks W.E., d'Errico F., Peterson A.T., Kageyama M., Sima A., Sanchez-Goni M.F. Neanderthal extinction by competitive exclusion. PLoS One. 2008. V. 3(12). e3972. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0003972

3. Bell D.C., Thomas W.K., Murtagh K.M., Dionne C.A., Graham A.C., Anderson J.E., Glover W.R. DNA base identification by electron microscopy. Microsc. Microanal. 2012. V. 18(5). P. 1049-1053. doi: 10.1017/S1431927612012615

4. Bocquet-Appel J.-P., Degioanni A. Neanderthal Demographic Estimates. Curr. Anthropol. 2013. V. 54. P. S202-S213. doi: 10.1086/673725

5. Bokma F., van den Brink V., Stadler T. Unexpectedly many extinct hominins. Evolution. 2012, V. 66(9). PP. 2969-2974. doi: 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2012.01660.x

6. Bruner E. Comparing endocranial form and shape differences in modern humans and Neandertals: a geometric approach. PaleoAnthropology. 2008. PP. 93-106.

7. Carbonell E., Viola B., Kelso J., Prufer K., Paabo S. Nuclear DNA sequences from the Middle Pleistocene Sima de los Huesos hominins. Nature. 2016. V. 531(7595). PP. 504-507. doi: 10.1038/nature17405

8. Caspermeyer J. The Great Evolutionary Smoke out: An Advantage for Modern Humans? Mol. Biol. Evol. 2016. V. 33(10). 2767. doi: 10.1093/molbev/msw181

9. Chaplygin E.Y., Morozov R.A., Nevolin V.K. On the possibility of biopolymer fragment analysis by tunneling microscopy. Biophysics. 2015. V. 60(1). P. 25-29.

10. Chemeris A.V., Garafutdinov R.R., Sakhabutdinova A.R., Morozov R.A., Matniyazov R.T., Gerashchenkov G.A., Kuluev B.R., Baymiev An.Kh., Baymiev Al.Kh., Chemeris D.A. Did Neanderthals interbreed en masse with Cro-Magnons? (From a paleodilettantish point of view but taking into account the data of whole genome sequencing of modern and ancient DNA specimens). Biomics. 2022. V.14(1). P. 156-179. doi: 10.31301/2221-6197.bmcs.2022-12 (In Russian).

11. Conde-Valverde M., Martinez I., Quam R.M., Rosa M., Velez A.D., Lorenzo C., Jarabo P., Bermudez de Castro J.M., Carbonell E., Arsuaga J.L. Neanderthals and H. sapiens had similar auditory and speech capacities. Nat. Ecol. Evol. 2021. V. 5(5). P. 609-615. doi: 10.1038/s41559-021-01391-6

12. Davies R., Underdown S. The Neanderthals: a Social Synthesis. Camb. Archaeol. J. 2006. V. 16. P. 145 -  164. doi.org/10.1017/S0959774306000096

13. Degioanni A., Bonenfant C., Cabut S., Condemi S. Living on the edge: Was demographic weakness the cause of Neanderthal demise? PLoS One. 2019. V. 14(5). e0216742. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216742

14. den Hoed J., Devaraju K., Fisher S.E. Molecular networks of the FOXP2 transcription factor in the brain. EMBO Rep. 2021. V.22(8). e52803. doi: 10.15252/embr.202152803

15. Deviese T., Abrams G., Hajdinjak M., Pirson S., De Groote I., Di Modica K., Toussaint M., Fischer V., Comeskey D., Spindler L., Meyer M., Semal P., Higham T. Reevaluating the timing of Neanderthal disappearance in Northwest Europe. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 2021. V. 118(12). e2022466118. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2022466118

16. Enard W., Przeworski M., Fisher S.E., Lai C.S., Wiebe V., Kitano T., Monaco A.P., Paabo S. Molecular evolution of FOXP2, a gene involved in speech and language. Nature. 2002. V.418(6900). P.869-872. doi: 10.1038/nature01025

17. Feynman R.P. There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom: An Invitation to Enter a New Field of Physics. Engin. Sci. 1960. V23. P.22-36.

18. Fitch W.T., de Boer B., Mathur N., Ghazanfar A.A. Monkey vocal tracts are speech-ready. Sci. Adv. 2016. V. 2(12). e1600723. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.1600723

19. Fitzsimmons K.E., Hambach U., Veres D., Iovita R. The Campanian Ignimbrite eruption: new data on volcanic ash dispersal and its potential impact on human evolution. PLoS One. 2013. V. 8(6). e65839. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0065839

20. Franchini L.F., Pollard K.S. Can a few non-coding mutations make a human brain? Bioessays. 2015. V. 37(10). PP. 1054-1061. doi: 10.1002/bies.201500049

21. Garafutdinov R.R., Chemeris D.A., Khidiyatova I.M., Sakhabutdinova A.R., Giniyatov Yu.R., Chemeris A.V. Prospects for the creation of genetically engineered "speaking" dogs. Biomics. 2022 V.14(1). P.68-78. doi: 10.31301/2221-6197.bmcs.2022-5 (In Russian).

22. Garafutdinov R.R., Sakhabutdinova A.R., Chemeris A.V. Long-term room temperature storage of DNA molecules. Biomics. 2020. V. 12(4). P. 552-563. doi: 10.31301/2221-6197.bmcs.2020-49 (In Russian).

23. Ghirotto S., Tassi F., Benazzo A., Barbujani G. No evidence of Neandertal admixture in the mitochondrial genomes of early European modern humans and contemporary Europeans. Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 2011. V. 146(2). PP. 242-252. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.21569

24. Gibbons A. Genomes offer rare glimpse of Neanderthal family groups. Science. 2021. V. 372(6548). P. 1251-1252. doi: 10.1126/science.372.6548.1251

25. Giniyatov Yu.R., Chemeris D.A., Yakhin O.I., Garafutdinov R.R., Chemeris A.V. Proto-dogs, dogs and their future. Biomics. 2021. V.13(3). p. 288-297. doi: 10.31301/2221-6197.bmcs.2021-20

26. Grigorenko A.P., Protasova M.S., Lisenkova A.A., Reshetov D.A., Andreeva T.V., Garcias G.L., Martino Roth M.D.G., Papassotiropoulos A., Rogaev E.I. Neurodevelopmental Syndrome with Intellectual Disability, Speech Impairment, and Quadrupedia IsAssociated with Glutamate Receptor Delta 2 Gene Defect. Cells. 2022. V. 11(3). 400. doi: 10.3390/cells11030400

27. Heim S., Amunts K., Hensel T., Grande M., Huber W., Binkofski F., Eickhoff S.B. The Role of Human Parietal Area 7A as a Link between Sequencing in Hand Actions and in Overt Speech Production. Front. Psychol. 2012. V. 3. P. 534. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00534

28. Henry A.G., Brooks A.S., Piperno D.R. Plant foods and the dietary ecology of Neanderthals and early modern humans. J. Hum. Evol. 2014. V. 69. PP. 44-54. doi: 10.1016/j.jhevol.2013.12.014.

29. Herrera K.J., Somarelli J.A., Lowery R.K., Herrera R.J. To what extent did Neanderthals and modern humans interact? Biol. Rev. Camb. Philos. Soc. 2009. V. 84(2). PP. 245-257. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-185x.2008.00071.x

30. Horan R.D., Bulte E., Shogren J.F. How Trade Saved Humanity from Biological Exclusion: An Economic Theory of Neanderthal Extinction. J. Econ. Behavior Organiz. 2005. V. 54. P. 1-29. doi: 10.1016/j.jebo.2004.03.009

31. Hubbard T.D., Murray I.A., Bisson W.H., Sullivan A.P., Sebastian A., Perry G.H., Jablonski N.G., Perdew G.H. Divergent Ah Receptor Ligand Selectivity during Hominin Evolution. Mol Biol. Evol. 2016. V. 33(10). P. 2648-2658. doi: 10.1093/molbev/msw143

32. Hublin J.J. The origin of Neandertals. PNAS. 2009. V.106. P. 16022-16027. doi: 10.1073/pnas.090411910 33. Hurst J.A., Baraitser M., Auger E., Graham F., Norell S. An extended family with a dominantly inherited speech disorder. Dev. Med. Child. Neurol. 1990. V.32(4). P.352-355. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8749.1990.tb16948.x

34. Kiya T., Itoh Y., Kubo T. Expression analysis of the FoxP homologue in the brain of the honeybee, Apis mellifera. Insect. Mol. Biol. 2008. V. 17(1). P. 53-60. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2583.2008.00775.x

35. Kochiyama T., Ogihara N., Tanabe H.C., Kondo O., Amano H., Hasegawa K., Suzuki H., Ponce de Leon M.S., Zollikofer C.P.E., Bastir M., Stringer C., Sadato N., Akazawa T. Reconstructing the Neanderthal brain using computational anatomy. Sci. Rep. 2018. V. 8(1). P. 6296. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24331-0

36. Krause J., Lalueza-Fox C., Orlando L. et al. The derived FOXP2 variant of modern humans was shared with Neandertals. Curr. Biol. 2007. V.17(21). P.1908-1912. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2007.10.008

37. Lai C.S., Fisher S.E., Hurst J.A., Levy E.R., Hodgson S., Fox M., Jeremiah S., Povey S., Jamison D.C., Green E.D., Vargha-Khadem F., Monaco A.P. The SPCH1 region on human 7q31: genomic characterization of the critical interval and localization of translocations associated with speech and language disorder. Am. J. Hum. Genet. 2000. V.67(2). P.357-368. doi: 10.1086/303011

38. Lai C.S., Fisher S.E., Hurst J.A., Vargha-Khadem F., Monaco A.P. A forkhead-domain gene is mutated in a severe speech and language disorder. Nature. 2001. V. 413(6855). P. 519-523. doi: 10.1038/35097076

39. Lalueza-Fox C., Rosas A., Estalrrich A., Gigli E., Campos P.F., Garcia-Tabernero A., Garcia-Vargas S., Sanchez-Quinto F., Ramirez O., Civit S., Bastir M., Huguet R., Santamaria D., Gilbert M.T., Willerslev E., de la Rasilla M. Genetic evidence for patrilocal mating behavior among Neandertal groups. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 2011. V. 108(1). P. 250-253. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1011553108

40. Lieberman P., McCarthy R.C. Tracking the evolution of language and speech. Expedition. 2007. V. 49(2). P. 15-20.

41. Linne C. Systema naturae per regna tria naturae, secundum classes, ordines, genera, species cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis. 1767.Stockholm. doi: 10.5962/bhl.title.559

42. MacDermot K.D., Bonora E., Sykes N., Coupe A.M., Lai C.S., Vernes S.C., Vargha-Khadem F., McKenzie F., Smith R.L., Monaco A.P., Fisher S.E. Identification of FOXP2 truncation as a novel cause of developmental speech and language deficits. Am.
J. Hum. Genet. 2005. V. 76(6). P. 1074-1080. doi: 10.1086/430841

43. Maricic T., Gunther V., Georgiev O., Gehre S., Curlin M., Schreiweis C., Naumann R., Burbano H.A., Meyer M., Lalueza-Fox C., de la Rasilla M., Rosas A., Gajovic S., Kelso J., Enard W., Schaffner W., Paabo S. A recent evolutionary change affects a regulatory element in the human FOXP2 gene. Mol. Biol. Evol. 2013. V. 30(4). P. 844-852. doi: 10.1093/molbev/mss271

44. Mozzi A., Forni D., Clerici M., Pozzoli U., Mascheretti S., Guerini F.R., Riva S., Bresolin N., Cagliani R., Sironi M. The evolutionary history of genes involved in spoken and written language: beyond FOXP2. Sci. Rep. 2016. V. 6. 22157. doi: 10.1038/srep22157

45. Murphy E., Benitez-Burraco A. Paleo-oscillomics: inferring aspects of Neanderthal language abilities from gene regulation of neural oscillations. J. Anthropol. Sci. 2018. V. 96. PP. 111-124. doi: 10.4436/JASS.96010

46. Murphy E., Benitez-Burraco A. Toward the Language Oscillogenome. Front. Psychol. 2018. V. 9. 1999. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01999

47. Nakamichi N., Takamoto K., Nishimaru H., Fujiwara K., Takamura Y., Matsumoto J., Noguchi M., Nishijo H. Cerebral Hemodynamics in Speech-Related Cortical Areas: Articulation Learning Involves the Inferior Frontal Gyrus, Ventral Sensory-Motor
Cortex, and Parietal-Temporal Sylvian Area. Front. Neurol. 2018. V. 9. 939. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2018.00939

48. Nishimura T., Tokuda I.T., Miyachi S., Dunn J.C., Herbst C.T., Ishimura K., Kaneko A., Kinoshita Y., Koda H., Saers J.P.P., Imai H., Matsuda T., Larsen O.N., Jurgens U., Hirabayashi H., Kojima S., Fitch W.T. Evolutionary loss of complexity in human vocal anatomy as an adaptation for speech. Science. 2022. V. 377(6607). P. 760-763. doi: 10.1126/science.abm1574

49. Ocobock C., Lacy S., Niclou A. Between a rock and a cold place: Neanderthal biocultural cold adaptations. Evol. Anthropol. 2021. V. 30(4). P. 262-279. doi: 10.1002/evan.21894

50. Poliva O. From where to what: a neuroanatomically based evolutionary model of the emergence of speech in humans. F1000Res. 2015. V. 4. 67. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.6175.3

51. Reich D., Green R.E., Kircher M., Krause J., Patterson N., Durand E.Y., Viola B., Briggs A.W., Stenzel U., Johnson P.L., Maricic T., Good J.M., Marques-Bonet T., Alkan C., Fu Q., Mallick S., Li H., Meyer M., Eichler E.E., Stoneking M., Richards M., Talamo S., Shunkov M.V., Derevianko A.P., Hublin J.J., Kelso J., Slatkin M., Paabo S. Genetic history of an archaic hominin group from Denisova Cave in Siberia. Nature. 2010. V. 468(7327). PP. 1053-1060. doi: 10.1038/nature09710

52. Rios L., Kivell T.L., Lalueza-Fox C., Estalrrich A., Garcia-Tabernero A., Huguet R., Quintino Y., de la Rasilla M., Rosas A. Skeletal Anomalies in The Neandertal Family of El Sidron (Spain) Support A Role of Inbreeding in Neandertal Extinction. Sci. Rep. 2019. V. 9(1). 1697. doi: 10.1038/s41598-019-38571-1

53. Roberts M.F., Bricher S.E. Modeling the disappearance of the Neanderthals using principles of population dynamics and ecology. J. Archaeol. Sci. 2018. V. 100. P. 16-31. doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2018.09.012

54. Roksandic M., Radović P., Wu X.J., Bae C.J. Resolving the "muddle in the middle": The case for Homo bodoensis sp. nov. Evol. Anthropol. 2022. V. 31(1). PP. 20-29. doi: 10.1002/evan.21929

55. Sakhabutdinova A.R., Mikhailenko K.I., Garafutdinov R.R., Kiryanova O.Yu., Sagitova M.A., Sagitov A.M., Chemeris A.V. Non-biological application of DNA molecules. Biomics. 2019. V.11(3). P. 344-377. DOI: 10.31301/2221-6197.bmcs.2019-28 (In Russian).

56. Sciubba E. The Exergy Footprint as a Sustainability Indicator: An Application to the Neanderthal–Sapiens Competition in the Late Pleistocene. Sustainability. 2019. V. 11 P. 4913. doi: 10.3390/su11184913

57. Serre D., Langaney A., Chech M., Teschler-Nicola M., Paunovic M., Mennecier P., Hofreiter M., Possnert G., Paabo S. No evidence of Neandertal mtDNA contribution to early modern humans. PLoS Biol. 2004. V. 2(3). e57. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0020057

58. Shipman P. Do the Eyes Have It? Am. Scientist. 2012. V. 100(3). P. 198-201. doi: 10.1511/2012.96.198

59. Somel M., Liu X., Khaitovich P. Human brain evolution: transcripts, metabolites and their regulators. Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 2013. V. 14(2). P. 112-127. doi: 10.1038/nrn3372

60. Steven L. Kuhn, Mary C. Stiner. What's a Mother To Do? The Division of Labor among Neandertals and Modern Humans in Eurasia. Curr. Anthropol. 2006. V. 47. PP. 953-981. doi: 10.1086/507197

61. Tallavaara M., Luoto M., Korhonen N., Jarvinen H., Seppa H. Human population dynamics in Europe over the Last Glacial Maximum. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 2015. V. 112(27). P. 8232-8237. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1503784112

62. Tanaka H., Kawai T. Partial sequencing of a single DNA molecule with a scanning tunnelling microscope. Nat. Nanotechnol. 2009. V. 4(8). P. 518-522. doi: 10.1038/nnano.2009.155

63. Thulo M., Rabie M.A., Pahad N., Donald H.L., Blane A.A., Perumal C.M., Penedo J.C., Fanucchi S. The influence of various regions of the FOXP2 sequence on its structure and DNA-binding function. Biosci. Rep. 2021. V. 41(1). BSR20202128. doi: 10.1042/BSR20202128

64. Timmermann A. Quantifying the potential causes of Neanderthal extinction: Abrupt climate change versus competition and interbreeding. Quat. Sci. Rev. 2020. V. 238. P. 106331. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106331

65. Underdown S. A potential role for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies in Neanderthal extinction. Med. Hypotheses. 2008. V. 71(1). P. 4-7. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2007.12.014

66. Vaesen K., Dusseldorp G.L., Brandt M.J. An emerging consensus in palaeoanthropology: demography was the main factor responsible for the disappearance of Neanderthals. Sci. Rep. 2021. V. 11(1). 4925. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-84410-7

67. Vaesen K., Scherjon F., Hemerik L., Verpoorte A. Inbreeding, Allee effects and stochasticity might be sufficient to account for Neanderthal extinction. PLoS One. 2019. V. 14(11). e0225117. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0225117

68. Valeriani D., Simonyan K. The dynamic connectome of speech control. Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B Biol. Sci. 2021. V. 376(1836). 20200256. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0256

69. Vishnyatsky L.B. Neanderthals: the History of failed humanity. Publishing house Nestor-History (St. Petersburg). 2010. 311 p.

70. Wilcke A., Ligges C., Burkhardt J., Alexander M., Wolf C., Quente E., Ahnert P., Hoffmann P., Becker A., Muller-Myhsok B., Cichon S., Boltze J., Kirsten H. Imaging genetics of FOXP2 in dyslexia. Eur. J. Hum. Genet. 2012. V. 20(2). 224-229. doi: 10.1038/ejhg.2011.160

71. Wolff H., Greenwood A.D. Did viral disease of humans wipe out the Neandertals? Med. Hypotheses. 2010. V. 75(1). P. 99-105. doi: 10.1016/j.mehy.2010.01.048

72. Woo Y.J., Wang T., Guadalupe T., Nebel R.A., Vino A., Del Bene V.A., Molholm S., Ross L.A., Zwiers M.P., Fisher S.E., Foxe J.J., Abrahams B.S. A Common CYFIP1 Variant at the 15q11.2 Disease Locus Is Associated with Structural Variation at the Language-Related Left Supramarginal Gyrus. PLoS One. 2016. V. 11(6). e0158036. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0158036

73. Zhang J., Webb D.M., Podlaha O. Accelerated protein evolution and origins of human-specific features: Foxp2 as an example. Genetics. 2002. V.162(4). P.1825-1835. doi: 10.1093/genetics/162.4.1825

74. Zubrow E. The demographic modelling of Neanderthal extinction. In: Mellars P. and C. Stringer (eds.). The Human Revolution. Behavioral and Biological Perspectives on the Origins of Modern Humans. 1989. Princeton University Press. P. 213–231.

75. Zwir I., Del-Val C., Hintsanen M., Cloninger K.M., Romero-Zaliz R., Mesa A., Arnedo J., Salas R., Poblete G.F., Raitoharju E., Raitakari O., Keltikangas-Jarvinen L., de Erausquin G.A., Tattersall I., Lehtimaki T., Cloninger C.R. Evolution of genetic networks for human creativity. Mol. Psychiatry. 2022. V. 27(1). P. 354-376. doi: 10.1038/s41380-021-01097-y