Geneticists from the University of California were able to detect a mutation in DNA fragments that happened one million years ago and made humans smarter than apes.
This was reported in the journal Science. According to scientists, the mutation process occurred very quickly and it happened in the so-called “Zone of accelerated development in humans” (Human Accelerated Regions, HAR).
In the early 2000s, when comparing human and chimpanzee genomes, it was noticed that some of the HARs may be responsible for the unique qualities that distinguish humans from their closest relatives, chimpanzees and bonobos. A new study has shown that the three-dimensional folding of human DNA in the nucleus serves as a key factor in human evolution.
To understand how humans became smarter than apes, geneticists have tried to understand whether structural changes in DNA can affect the uptake of certain genes. To do this, the genomes of 241 mammalian species were compared using artificial intelligence.
In the end, 312 HAR genes were identified, of which 30% were located in those regions of DNA in which structural variations led to the fact that the human genome folded differently than in other primates. In addition, the scientists found that regions containing HARs are saturated with genes that distinguish humans from chimpanzees.
Thus, many HARs play a role in the development of the embryo, especially in the formation of neural pathways that are responsible for intelligence. Therefore, according to researchers, it is they who can be the “culprits” of human development, writes “Gazeta.ru” .
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