A breakthrough in paleogenomics has allowed scientists to extract Denisovan mitochondrial DNA directly from cave sediments in the Tibetan Plateau. The samples, dated to approximately 60,000 years ago, suggest that these ancient hominids were well-adapted to high-altitude environments long before modern humans arrived.
This research confirms that Denisovans possessed the EPAS1 gene variant, which aids in oxygen processing at high altitudes—a trait later passed on to modern Tibetans through interbreeding. The study rewrites our understanding of human adaptation and migration in Asia.