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The human skeleton’s unique adaptations relied on gene regulatory changes

Nature作者：Audrey M. Arner2026年9月23日正文已收录本站
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Variants in genes involved in the production of extracellular matrix molecules could have enabled the skeletal adaptations that distinguish humans from other great apes.

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  1. Audrey M. Arner

    1. Audrey M. Arner is in the Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA.

  2. Amanda J. Lea

    1. Amanda J. Lea is in the Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37232, USA.

Across biological and biomedical disciplines, there is a strong interest in understanding the evolution and function of traits that differ in humans and our closest primate relatives, such as chimpanzees, bonobos and gorillas. Writing in Nature, Yan et al.1 use a comprehensive suite of genomics tools to systematically map genetic variants, genes and pathways that are involved in differentiating the human skeleton from those of other great apes.

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-02775-z

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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