A piece of jawbone was found by a Tibetan monk in 1980 at an elevation believed to be populated by humans about 40k years ago. The bone has been found to be 160k years old.
The jawbone has been determined to belong to a Denisovan, an ancient human species. Before the discovery the only evidence of the existence of this species came from bones found in the Denisova Cave in Siberia.
There is hope that other bones, previously unearthed and waiting to be analyzed, could also belong to Denisovans. There are currently only a handful of bone fragments which describe this species.
This discovery helps unravel a mystery about Tibetans ability to live in extreme elevations. Due to the presence of a gene called EPAS1 these people are able to transport oxygen more effectively. This gene has also been found in Denisovans, suggesting it was passed on from this ancient human species to modern day Tibetans. The mystery about why the Denisovans possessed this gene in the first place has been solved with the discovery of the jawbone.
The belief is that ancient Denisovans, possessing the EPAS1 gene, interbred with modern humans and passed that genetic variation along. Before, the belief was that modern humans, who’s ancestors had bred with Denisovans, possessed the EPAS1 gene and therefore thrived at higher altitudes. This belief came from the fact that no evidence was present to suggest ancient humans ever lived at the altitudes of the Tibetan plateau.
EPAS1 has been called the “super athlete gene” because of the benefits the adaptation confers in some sports.
