The genetic analysis of a 24,000-year-old arm bone of an ancient Siberian boy suggests that Native Americans have a more complicated ancestry than scientists had previously realized, with some of their distant kin looking more Eurasian than East Asian.
The new study, published online Wednesday in the journal Nature, represents the oldest genome of a modern human being ever fully sequenced.
Modern-day Native Americans share anywhere from 14 to 38 percent of their DNA with the Siberian hunter-gatherers — who are not closely related to East Asians — with the bulk coming from East Asian ancestors.