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Updated December 21st, 2019 at 17:35 IST

Stone-age chewing gum that uncovers complete human DNA sample found

Danish researchers have managed to uncover a complete human DNA sample from a very small piece of birch pitch which is 5000 years old according to reports.

Reported by: Sounak Mitra
Stone-age
| Image:self
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Danish researchers have managed to uncover a complete human DNA sample from a very small piece of birch pitch which is expected to be 5000 years old used as chewing gum, according to a study revealed on December 17. The sample is believed to be of the stone age era and it produced enough information to determine the source's sex, what she had last eaten and the germs in her mouth. It yielded them the information that she had dark hair, dark skin, and blue eyes. The scientists concluded that the person was closely related to hunter-gatherers from mainland Europe residing in Central Scandinavia at that time. Hannes Schroeder of the University of Copenhagen said that it is the first time that the first entire ancient human genome has been taken out from anything other than human bones.

READ: Ancient Chewing Gum Helps Scientists Rebuild Consumer's Look; Twitter Feels She Was Indian

Scientists come up with several conclusions

Schroeder is a co-author of the study that was published in the review Nature Communications. Tehis Jensen, one of the authors said that the sample was found at an archaeological site at Syltholm, southern Denmark. He said that Syltholm is completely unique. The researchers also discovered traces of plant and animal DNA. But they were unable to get the reason why people chose to chew the bark. The scientists came up with several conclusions saying that it was chewed to convert it into the glue, to clean teeth, to put off their hunger.

READ: Boy Kidnapped In 1964 Found Through Ancestry Sites

'Looks like an Indian'

As soon as the image was tweeted by a news channel, Twitterati was quick to give their opinion about the image. Multiple people drew comparisons of the girl in the image calling her an Indian girl. Not just her nationality but multiple people also started speculating her religion wherein some called her a South Indian while some called her Punjabi. Apart from this, there were also a few who felt that the girl in the image looked like the singing sensation Ranu Mondal who recently went viral and also was signed by Himesh Reshammiya for her upcoming film's compositions. A lot of people also did not hold back from passing derogatory remarks on the girl's appearance. Check out the tweets here.

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READ: Police Catches Robber From DNA Left Behind After Walking Face-first Into A Door

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Published December 21st, 2019 at 16:03 IST

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