ИСТИНА

The rapid progress of genome decoding techniques has culminated in the sequencing of mitochondrial and nuclear DNA of several fossil hominins of different origin from Central Asia, carried out at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig (Krause et al., 2007; 2010; Prufer et al, 2014). Neanderthal migration to Southern Siberia was detected by archaeological, palaeogenetic and anthropological studies. Today their skeletal remains are estimated in three caves of highland Altai, subdivided by hundreds of kilometers. Modern radiological and microscopic techniques offer deeper insight into the skeletal development of fossil and extant members of the genus Homo and enable researchers to work with small bones and bony fragments. Earlier using micrfocus X-ray we tried to differentiate between “archaic” and “modern” samples in degree of trabecular system development and mineral density (Mednikova, Potrakhov, Bessonov, 2012). Then we have used the nondestructive method of micro computerized tomography for a comparative histological assessment of the Denisova girl’s biological age (Mednikova et al., 2013). In this case manual phalanges of adult Neanderthals from different Altai caves (Okladnikov, Chagyrskaya, Denisova) were studied. Comparative data were taken by the scanning of bones of anatomically modern humans from Sunghir and Markina Gora. 3D and 2D magnified reconstructions are analyzed, and a comparative histological assessments of the microstructural features of bones are made. The volumetric X-ray microscopy we used is a nondestructive technique of evaluation of vascular net density in compact bone, which is an important advantage given the uniqueness and the fragmentary nature of finds. The method gives evidence for relatively high morphological variability of development of vascular system of adult Neanderthals inhabited Okladnikov, Chagyrskaya and Denisova Caves. The results can be interpreted from different points, including occupational or genetic differences.