The GENETIC MUTATIONS That Separate Humans From Animals

When did hominins stop being "mere animals chasing other animals", and start on the path to becoming human? The question has fascinated anthropologists and biologists for decades. At the heart of our human distinction lies our unparalleled ability for complex language and intelligence.

This gift of intelligence did not emerge in an instant. It was shaped by millions of years of evolution, with key genetic developments playing a pivotal role: the fusion of Chromosome 2 and specific amino acid mutations in the FOX-P2 and TY-K1 genes.

In the grand theater of evolution, two unassuming amino acids—arginine and lysine—played quiet yet vital roles in shaping the destinies of both Neanderthals and modern humans. These two building blocks of life weren’t just nutritional essentials; they were molecular players in a saga of survival, brainpower, and the pursuit of dominance in a harsh and competitive world.

CHAPTERS:
0:00 THE TYTL1 GENE IN MODERN HUMANS
5:45 CHROMOSOME 2 FUSION
9:45 FOXP2 GENE IN MODERN HUMANS

SOURCES:
Human TKTL1 implies greater neurogenesis in frontal neocortex of modern humans than Neanderthals
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36074...

Revised time estimation of the ancestral human chromosome 2 fusion
https://bmcgenomics.biomedcentral.com...

No Evidence for Recent Selection at FOXP2 among Diverse Human Populations
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0...

Genomic inference of a severe human bottleneck during the Early to Middle Pleistocene transition
https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/s...

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