Humans know to eat plants from 180,000 years ago

Scientists believe that modern humans began to appear in Africa after genetic changes helped them to adapt to plant foods. This change makes modern humans can leave the coast to go deep into the continent.

Scientists, from the Forest Baptist Wake Medical Center, Johns Hopkins College of Medicine and Washington University School of Medicine (USA), conducted genetic analysis of 1,092 people from 15 different strains of the world. , including the first modern humans appeared 180,000 years ago.

As a result, the team found that the change of an important gene can convert fat from plants into the necessary nutrients for the brain, making the modern humans 180,000 years ago. can adapt to more living conditions instead of living in coastal areas as before.

'Places to live near water sources are important because they are ready to provide fish and shellfish rich in DHA fatty acids needed for brain development. This could lead to prehistoric people living near areas of central African water , 'said Dr Floyd Chilton, head of the research team at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, on the Daily Mail.

At the time, Dr. Joshua Akey, head of the Washington University School of Medicine research, said that genetic change plays a particularly important role because this helps humans have a supply of substances. Fat is more necessary for development.

'The power of the gene impressed me very much and I realized that it could help us know what happened tens of thousands of years ago, by studying the genetic diversity that exists in human strains. modern day, ' said Dr. Joshua Akey.

A 2011 study also found that the proportion of people from Africa who possessed a gene capable of converting plant fatty acids to cholesterol-free fatty acids was often higher than those from other continents.