Enamel proteome shows that Gigantopithecus was an early diverging pongine

Frido Welker (), Jazmín Ramos-Madrigal, Martin Kuhlwilm, Wei Liao, Petra Gutenbrunner, Marc de Manuel, Diana Samodova, Meaghan Mackie, Morten E. Allentoft, Anne-Marie Bacon, Matthew J. Collins, Jürgen Cox, Carles Lalueza-Fox, Jesper V. Olsen, Fabrice Demeter, Wei Wang (), Tomas Marques-Bonet () and Enrico Cappellini ()
Additional contact information
Frido Welker: University of Copenhagen
Jazmín Ramos-Madrigal: University of Copenhagen
Martin Kuhlwilm: University Pompeu Fabra
Wei Liao: China University of Geosciences
Petra Gutenbrunner: Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry
Marc de Manuel: University Pompeu Fabra
Diana Samodova: University of Copenhagen
Meaghan Mackie: University of Copenhagen
Morten E. Allentoft: University of Copenhagen
Anne-Marie Bacon: CNRS FRE 2029 BABEL, Université Paris Descartes, Faculté de Chirurgie Dentaire
Matthew J. Collins: University of Copenhagen
Jürgen Cox: Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry
Carles Lalueza-Fox: University Pompeu Fabra
Jesper V. Olsen: University of Copenhagen
Fabrice Demeter: University of Copenhagen
Wei Wang: Shandong University
Tomas Marques-Bonet: University Pompeu Fabra
Enrico Cappellini: University of Copenhagen

Nature, 2019, vol. 576, issue 7786, 262-265

Abstract: Abstract Gigantopithecus blacki was a giant hominid that inhabited densely forested environments of Southeast Asia during the Pleistocene epoch1. Its evolutionary relationships to other great ape species, and the divergence of these species during the Middle and Late Miocene epoch (16–5.3 million years ago), remain unclear2,3. Hypotheses regarding the relationships between Gigantopithecus and extinct and extant hominids are wide ranging but difficult to substantiate because of its highly derived dentognathic morphology, the absence of cranial and post-cranial remains1,3–6, and the lack of independent molecular validation. We retrieved dental enamel proteome sequences from a 1.9-million-year-old G. blacki molar found in Chuifeng Cave, China7,8. The thermal age of these protein sequences is approximately five times greater than that of any previously published mammalian proteome or genome. We demonstrate that Gigantopithecus is a sister clade to orangutans (genus Pongo) with a common ancestor about 12–10 million years ago, implying that the divergence of Gigantopithecus from Pongo forms part of the Miocene radiation of great apes. In addition, we hypothesize that the expression of alpha-2-HS-glycoprotein, which has not been previously observed in enamel proteomes, had a role in the biomineralization of the thick enamel crowns that characterize the large molars in Gigantopithecus9,10. The survival of an Early Pleistocene dental enamel proteome in the subtropics further expands the scope of palaeoproteomic analysis into geographical areas and time periods previously considered incompatible with the preservation of substantial amounts of genetic information.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41586-019-1728-8

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