Population genomics: Mitochondria and human origins

Scanning electron micrograph by world-renowned photographer Lennart Nilsson (Karolinska Institutet, www.csb.ki.se/md/md.html), shows mitochondria in a human liver cell.

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), already a potent probe for the history of human evolution, should become even more powerful following the first analysis of global mtDNA diversity, based on analyses of the complete mtDNA sequence of 53 humans of diverse origins. The complete mitochondrial genome provides improved estimates for of the dates of major events during the evolution of modern humans, including the African origin of mitochondrial DNA diversity, the exodus from Africa and the subsequent rapid population expansion among non-Africans.

Mitochondrial genome variation and the origin of modern humans
MAX INGMAN, HENRIK KAESSMANN, SVANTE PÄÄBO, ULF GYLLENSTEN
Nature 408, 708-713 (7 December 2000)
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Human evolution: A start for population genomics
S. BLAIR HEDGES
The most thorough analysis yet of the divergence of sequences in human mitochondrial DNA has been carried out. The results support the view that modern humans originated in Africa.
Nature 408, 652-653 (7 December 2000)
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Origin of Species
(7 December 2000)

relics : Humans did come out of Africa, says DNA
The DNA of living humans is revealing when and where we evolved, reports Jeremy Thomson. (7 December 2000)

7 December 2000 table of contents