How Neanderthal Are You?
A new genetic test pinpoints your cavedwelling ancestry
Till now, we’ve had to rely on guesswork based on our officemates’ forehead bulges, receding chins, and subliterate grunts to gauge how much Neanderthal is in their ancestry. No more! 23andMe, the popular personal genomics company that analyzes your DNA based on a saliva sample, has added a test for Neanderthal percentage into their analytic suite.
The test compares the contemporary human genome to the Neanderthal genome to calculate what percentage of your own DNA comes from that branch of the family.
“Most people have Neanderthal DNA, on average about 2.5 percent,” according to 23andMe. “But there are outliers, who have much more.”
How do you stack up?