OK, glad I hadn't yet recycled this magazine: Archaeology Magazine, November/December 2006, "The Neanderthal Code". That is one of the articles I read recently. Unfortunately I would have to scan or type the long article explaining how they have extracted and analyzed the Neanderthal DNA, but here is a bit of it which explains what I said. The scientist is Dr. Svante Paabo of the Max Planck Institute (Switzerland, I think).
Quote:
Sequencing the Neanderthal genome should provide a clearer picture of how much, if any, genetic material Neanderthals passed along to us. This is why Paabo is constantly asked whether Neanderthals had sex with modern humans. If so, Multi-Regional looks better (refering to a theory explained in the article); if not, and Neanderthal genetics differ widely from that of modern humans, the Multi-Regional Evolution boat has got a hole in it.
Paabo's research is already showing differences between Neanderthals and modern humans, and he clearly backs the Out-Of-Africa theory. He is tightlipped about the subject, citing pending publications. But a report in the journal Nature states his lab has already found substantial differences between the Y-chromosomes in Neanderthals and those in modern humans - another indication that the groups did not interbreed.
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