Neanderthals could have died out

[Owlscrying]

Neanderthals may have died out because their bodies overheated as the Earth grew warmer, according to new research.

Analysis of DNA obtained from Neanderthal remains has revealed key differences from modern humans that suggest their bodies produced excess heat.

While in the cold climate of an ice age this would have provided the species with an advantage, as the earth warmed they would have been less able to cope. Ultimately this would have caused their extinction around 24,000 years ago.

Scientists at Newcastle University have put forward the theory after examining a particular form of genetic material which was obtained from the fossilised bones of Neanderthals.

By comparing it with that found in modern humans, they discovered that Neanderthals had key differences in the sections responsible for producing energy in all living cells.

Professor Patrick Chinnery, a neurogeneticist at Newcastle University, believes the differences in this mitochondrial DNA could have caused Neanderthals to be inefficient at producing energy, meaning their cells leaked heat.

"Differences in these mitochondrial DNA sequences might explain why modern humans were able to survive while Neanderthals were not.

Mitochondria are tiny structures found inside all living cells and are the biological power stations that produce the energy cells need to survive by converting sugar from food into energy.

Recent work by scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Germany revealed that Neanderthals shared a language gene that is only found in modern humans. The controversial findings raised the debate about whether Neanderthals were capable of speech.

Neanderthals are thought to have evolved from a common ancestor shared with modern humans around 400,000 years ago. It is thought they died out around 10,000 years after modern humans began spreading in to Europe.

Source

[Neognosis]

Neat. I could buy that as a contributing factor for sure.

[legionromanes]

surely this is rubbish, the neanderthals wore clothes, when I'm hot I take mine off, were they too dumb to figure this out

[snuffypuffer]

Man I bet they sweated a lot.

[psyche101]

A possibility, but with the Neanderthal having a great cranial cpapacity, and a protein rich diet, one might think they would migrate, or find some adaption to help them deal with heat. They were thinkers, and could commuicate.

That said, it does seem to co-incide well with the generally accepted exctintion period.