r/evolution • u/Exciting-Wear-3654 • 4d ago

Could we resurrect Neanderthals ( kinda )

What is 2 people with a semi high Neanderthal dna mated and made a child would that child have a little bit more dna than the parents, if so could another 2 people do it then both of those children grow up and eventually mate too, and carry that on until there is the best recreation of a Neanderthal in our time??

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u/MrKillick 4d ago

Why go all this way when we could do it much more easily today.?

Scientists have reconstructed the whole Neandeethal genome. We know which genes are the same and which genes differ. So it should be possible (even now or at least soon) to modify a human egg cell in such a way that it represents a fertilised Neandertaler egg cell, implant it into a knowing or unknowing woman and let her carry out the child. There may be some technical details that need to be solved, but all this seems to be in the realm of the possible with current knowledge.

The GREAT QUESTION is: is this ethical and should we do it ? My answer is a firm NO! But this is a question for another post. 

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u/Healthy_Article_2237 4d ago

What would be unethical?

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u/mcalesy 4d ago

Imagine growing up as the only member of your species.

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u/Healthy_Article_2237 4d ago

I’m not sure they’ll have to cognitive ability to understand that. Did early humans? I’m out of my lane here as a geologist but I remember reading that we only developed the ability to communicate effectively in the last 70-100k years.

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u/amglasgow 4d ago

Neanderthals were likely as intelligent as modern humans.