NEW YORK — Scientists have pieced together most of the DNA of a man who lived in Greenland about 4,000 years ago, a pioneering feat that revealed hints about his appearance and even an increased risk of baldness.
It’s the first genome from an ancient human, showing the potential for what one expert called a time machine for learning about the biology of ancient people.
Analysis suggests the Greenland man probably had type A-positive blood, brown eyes, darker skin than most Europeans, an increased chance of going bald and several biological adaptations for weathering a cold climate, researchers report in today’s issue of the journal Nature.
DNA also indicated the man had dark, thick hair, a trait the scientists observed because that’s where his genetic material came from.
Results suggest ancestors of the man, a Saqqaq, migrated from Siberia about 5,500 years ago.
