Long-lost giant panda relative is found from DNA taken from a 22,000-year-old fossilised skull unearthed in a Chinese cave
- Remains from a cave have the world's oldest sample of panda DNA
- Researchers believe that pandas occupied large areas of China in the past
- They haven’t been able to map entire giant panda family tree due to lack of DNA
- This new work suggests there may be some previously unknown branches
DNA from a 22,000-year-old skull has revealed a long-lost relative of giant pandas that once roamed southern China.
The mysterious panda relative is believed to have separated from present-day pandas between 144,000 to 227,000 years ago.
Its ancient skull was found by chance in a cave in Guangxi province.
No pandas live in there today. With numbers fewer than 2,500, giant pandas are confined to just three provinces in central China.
But scientists have long believed pandas covered large areas of the country.
A lack of DNA has mean they have been unable to map the entire panda family tree - but it looks like they are now getting closer.
The latest discovery suggests there may be some previously unknown branches
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Scientists have discovered a lost-lineage of cave-dwelling pandas that are believed to have separated from present-day pandas 144,000 to 227,000 years ago, the unique species of extinct panda was found in a Chinese cave
Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences analysed the fossil using DNA fragments, which they compared to giant pandas.
They sequenced nearly 150,000 DNA fragments of what is the oldest panda ever found - and aligned them to the DNA of today's giant panda's.
The result was a recovery of the Cizhutuo panda's complete 'mitochondrial genome' - revealing a long-lost panda lineage.
A family tree was created using genetic information from the fossil as well as 138 present-day bears and 32 ancient bears.
Results show that the split between the Cizhutuo panda and the ancestor of present-day pandas goes back about 183,000 years.
Dr Qiaomei Fu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences said: 'Using a single complete mtDNA sequence, we find a distinct mitochondrial lineage.
Pandas are known for their black eyes, their love of bamboo and a lack of libido but little is known about their evolutionary history. By studying the mitochondrial DNA of the 22,000-year-old fossil the researchers have found a cousin species (stock image)
A cave explorer found the skull in Guangxi, a Chinese province that borders Vietnam. Giant pandas do not live in this area today
'This suggests that the Cizhutuo panda, while genetically more closely related to present-day pandas than other bears, has a deep, separate history from the common ancestor of present-day pandas.
'This really highlights that we need to sequence more DNA from ancient pandas to really capture how their genetic diversity has changed through time and how that relates to their current, much more restricted and fragmented habitat.'
Very little is known about pandas' past, especially in regions outside of their current range in Shaanxi province or Gansu and Sichuan provinces.
Evidence suggests that pandas in the past were much more widespread, but it remains unclear how those pandas of yesteryear were related to the animals we see today.
Obtaining DNA from the specimen was a challenge for the Chinese researchers, as the subtropical climate of the cave often means DNA is not well preserved.
Using new and sophisticated methods, the team extracted the DNA from the mitochondria of the fossil.
Mitochondria are found inside cells and contain a small amount of DNA.
They are unique in biology as it is the only instance of DNA being found outside of a cell's nucleus.
They are widely studied in the fields of phylogenetics and evolutionary biology as the DNA found in mitochondria comes exclusively from the mother.
The fossil was found in found in Cizhutuo Cave (pictured) in the Guangxi Province of China - a place where no pandas live today. Obtaining DNA from the specimen was a challenge for the researchers, as the subtropical climate of the cave often means DNA is not well preserved
This is because the mitochondria from the sperm of males is destroyed during fertilisation.
As a result, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is far less diluted that normal DNA and can be used to trace back a maternal lineage.
Using this method, the scientists found that the ancient panda had a long and unique history that differed from that of present-day panda populations.
Researchers say that their success in capturing the mitochondrial genome also suggests that they might successfully isolate and analyse DNA from the ancient specimen's much more expansive nuclear genome.
Dr Fu added: 'Comparing the Cizhutuo panda's nuclear DNA to present-day genome-wide data would allow a more thorough analysis of the evolutionary history of the Cizhutuo specimen, as well as its shared history with present-day pandas.
The study was published in Current Biology.
Giant pandas need to eat 20-40lbs of bamboo each day
While its numbers are slowly increasing, the giant panda remains one of the rarest bears in the world, and it is classed as a vulnerable species.
An estimated 1,864 giant pandas are living in the wild - in southwest China - and 548 in zoos and breeding centres around the world.
Experts are unclear what age giant pandas can reach in the wild, but the oldest panda reared in captivity so far was 38 years old.
A wild panda's diet is 99 per cent bamboo, with the remaining one per cent made up of small rodents.
Four-month-old baby giant panda Xiang Xiang is pictured getting a physical examination at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo on October 10, 2017
Giant pandas need to consume around 20 to 40 pounds (10 to 20 kilograms) of bamboo each day to get the nutrients they need.
They are around three to four feet tall when standing on all four legs.
Giant pandas reach breeding maturity between four and eight years of age. They may be reproductive until about age 20.
Female pandas ovulate only once a year, in the spring. A short period of two to three days around ovulation is the only time a giant panda is able to conceive.
Cubs do not open their eyes until they are six to eight weeks of age and are not able to move independently until three months old.
A newborn panda is about the size of a stick of butter, or about 1/900th the size of its mother.
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