Man did not evolve from ape, claims revolutionary new study. We are evolutionarily closer to a completely unexpected creature

#Man #evolve #ape #claims #revolutionary #study #evolutionarily #closer #completely #unexpected #creature

When we talk about human evolution, most of us think of hairy hominins, swinging on vines. However, the evolution of our species began millions of years earlier. Around the time the animals decided to leave the ancient sea and move to land.

The transition from water to land, which took place about 370 million years ago, is one of the most significant events in the evolution of vertebrates. However, it is still unclear what caused this move. Whether it was an escape from predators or an effort to expand its diet to include mosses, horsetails and arthropods.

In addition, scientists have long assumed that lungs and limbs developed only when animals inhabited land. But the recent mapping of the genome of primitive fish shows that the basis of these innovations already existed in animals living 50 million years earlier.

Experts from the University of Copenhagen decided to investigate fish belonging to the bichiro family, which inhabit shallow freshwater habitats in Africa. Research has confirmed that their joint, which connects the so-called metapterygium bone to the radial bones in the pectoral fin, is genetically identical to our joint, which connects the bones of the upper arm and forearm.

In addition, these fish have a pair of lungs that are anatomically similar to ours. “We found that through evolution, one branch retained the lung functions that eventually led to the evolution of tetrapods. In the second group, the organ was modified into a gas bladder,” he says Guojie Zhang z Villum Center for Biodiversity Genomics.

Fish ancestors

But joints and lungs are not the only remnants of our fish ancestors. Another evidence of evolution is the vertical central furrow between the nose and the lip, called the philtrum. She was a mystery to experts for a long time. It has no function.

close

info

Author: Stan Shebs, CC BY-SA 3.0,

zoom_in

Bichira Weeksova

They understood her presence only after they scanned the development of the human embryo’s face. “The upper lip, together with the jaw and palate, first grow as gill structures. When they come together, they form a small scar – a triangular groove,” says the author of the BBC documentary series Inside the Human Body Michael Mosley.

We also inherited the location of the genitals from our aquatic ancestors. Humans, like for example sharks, have gonads close to the liver at an early age. As they descend over time, they become the ovaries and testes.

Source: Youtube

However, from time to time a problem appears – a weakening of the abdominal wall and an inguinal hernia. The scientists add with a smile that we can thank the fish for these complications.

Ancient evolution

Perhaps everyone has experienced it. Sudden and spontaneous contractions of the diaphragm, accompanied by a characteristic sound. That’s a hiccup. She, too, is the result of a long evolution.

“Fish breathing is much easier than human breathing,” says Michael Mosley. “In them, the brain only activates the throat and gills. In our country, however, it sends signals all the way to the chest and diaphragm. This means that the nerves are more prone to spasms.”

Once the hiccup starts, it is kept going by reflexes that allow the animals to keep water out of the body and only into the gills.

For humans and other mammals, these spontaneous contractions have no benefit. But like our limbs, the respiratory system, the philtrum and the genitals, they are excellent evidence that human evolution began at the beginning of time.

Resources: www.sciencedaily.com, www.bbc.com, www.obkec.azet.sk