Scientists read ancient DNA from South African hunter gatherers and found a very early human branch that shaped survival ...

These genomes are the oldest yet found of modern humans in Europe, though they were not the first hominids to walk these ...

The human genome is made up of 23 pairs of chromosomes, the biological blueprints that make humans … well, human. But it turns out that some of our DNA — about 8% — are the remnants of ancient viruses ...

Forget the long-standing stereotype of Neanderthals as lone wanderers or Early Humans as hostile outsiders. A groundbreaking new study has revealed a surprising chapter in human history, suggesting ...

When scientists sequenced the first Neanderthal genomes, they did not just resurrect a lost branch of the human family tree, ...

In the earliest hours after fertilization, an embryo takes its first steps toward becoming a living organism by shedding maternal control and activating its own genetic program. This critical process, ...

Ancient DNA from Denisovans left humans a powerful genetic advantage — a gene that helped early Americans survive new ...

Learn more about how researchers can take evidence from the past to better shape our idea of what Neanderthals looked like.

In the north, distinctive lineages such as M27, M28, and M29′Q trace deep roots in New Guinea and Near Oceania, while in the south, Australia’s own unique haplogroups appear to descend from the ...

Ancient humans crossing the Bering Strait into the Americas carried more than tools and determination—they also carried a genetic legacy from Denisovans, an extinct human relative. A new study reveals ...