Current sectionArchaeologyAnalysis of tooth enamel proteins found a uniquely Denisovan gene in Homo erectus individuals who lived in China 400,000 years agoShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeTooth from an erectus. Sample Hx-s2 from Hexian Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology / Chinese Academy of SciencesTooth from an erectus. Sample Hx-s2 from Hexian Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology / Chinese Academy of Sciences06:27 PM • May 13 2026 IDTWe know that Homo erectus emerged in Africa and spread to Eurasia, where it survived until just 107,000 years ago – a mere eyeblink in terms of human evolution. In time, on both continents, they would encounter at least two other human species – Neanderthals in Europe and Denisovans in Asia.Now analysis of enamel proteins from the teeth of six Homo erectus individuals who lived in China around 400,000 years ago shows they had Denisovan genes too. The requisite conclusion is that these two distinct species not only met but mated, Qiaomei Fu and colleagues reported in Nature on Wednesday. Current belief suggests that Homo erectus emerged in Africa over 2 million years ago and quickly spread beyond that original homeland to Eurasia. En route, it passed through Israel, and indeed Ubeidiya has been identified as a site from 1.9 million years ago linked to that migration.Neanderthals, Homo sapiens and Denisovans arose from a branch in Africa that split off the hominin tree perhaps around 800,000 years ago. The branch that would produce Homo sapiens stayed in Africa. Another branch migrated to Eurasia and produced Neanderthals and Denisovans there.Thus it is that erectus, originating in a migration 2 million years ago, met Denisovans, who emerged on another branch of the human tree in Asia less than a million years ago.It isn't the point here, but erectus was once thought to be the first hominin to leave Africa, and the only one to do so 2 million years ago. Apparently, that's all wrong. At least one other archaic hominin also left Africa about 2 million years ago – a small one. But the small one isn't part of this story.So where did erectus and Denisovans meet and mate – and what can it tell us about the tangled state of our own DNA?Reconstruction of Javan erectus: You can see the attraction. Credit: Freyant/ShutterstockReconstruction of Javan erectus: You can see the attraction. Credit: Freyant/ShutterstockLove is in the Hexian airThe new research is based on analysis of tooth enamel from five male and one female erectus individuals, all living about 400,000 years ago in China – Zhoukoudian, Hexian and Sunjiadong.All the erectus individuals from these three sites feature two amino acid variants, the team explains.One is called "A253G" and has never been seen before. It seems to have been unique to erectus, says the team after looking for it in us. Denisovans, Neanderthals, Homo antecessor from Atapuerca, Spain, great apes and even the so-called erectus from Dmanisi – none have it. Only the six Chinese erectus individuals do.Tooth from an erectus found in Zhoukoudian. Side view Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesTooth from an erectus found in Zhoukoudian. Side view Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of SciencesThe Sunjiadong SJD10M tooth from layer 4 of the Sunjiadong site. Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology / Chinese Academy of SciencesThe Sunjiadong SJD10M tooth from layer 4 of the Sunjiadong site. Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology / Chinese Academy of SciencesThe other variant, M273V, has been identified in Denisovans and only in them, and now in the Chinese erectuses too.The requisite conclusion is that erectus and Denisovans met and interbred, producing a population in eastern Asia that retained the Denisovan trait.This fits with the broader pattern of archaic human behavior. There is ample and growing evidence that our species interbred with Denisovans, Neanderthals and some other archaic hominin as well – erectus again? Maybe. They all had sex with each other.And then what? We had sex with Denisovans too, in Asia, and now we can fairly speculate that at least some of the genes we inherited from Denisovans originated in H. erectus.The Sunjiadong SJD14M tooth Credit: Qiaomei Fu / Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology / Chinese Academy of Sciences