Bonobos at the Cincinnati Zoo. Photo: Greg Hume via Wikimedia Commons.

DETROIT A Wayne State University School of Medicine researcher is one step closer to understanding the genetic basis that enable bonobos, one of humankinds sibling species, to learn language, play music and use rudimentary tools.

Derek Wildman, Ph.D., led a team that isolated the DNA and sequenced the genome, or whole inherited genetic make-up, of Kanzi, a bonobo based at the Bonobo Hope Great Ape Trust Sanctuary in Des Moines, Iowa. The sequencing, only the second of its kind, was performed at both WSU and an off-site private company.

Wildmanis associate professor of Molecular Medicine and Genetics, and of Obstetrics and Gynecology. He is the director of the Molecular Evolution Group at WSUs Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics. To learn more about the center, visit http://www.homopan.wayne.edu

Kanzi, 32, was raised from birth in a family of five humans and eight bonobos, and was trained to use and understand simple spoken English to communicate.

He also plays music, makes fire, cooks simple meals, and makes and uses flint knives. The goal of sequencing Kanzisgenome is to understand the unique abilities of Kanzi and the other bonobos living at the sanctuary.

We can compare Kanzisgenome to the genomes of humans, and other primates in order to see what is unique about Kanzifrom a genetic perspective, Dr. Wildmansaid. We also can see what Kanzishares with other primates. Because we have also sequenced his transcriptomewe can build gene models that are more accurate, and we can see which genes are expressed in his blood, and in the placenta of Kanzis son, Teco. This is a very important first step in untangling nature from nurture in the cognitive development of bonobos.

Next, the team will compare the genomes and epigenomes of bonobos raised with human language to those that have not had such experiences.

The bonobo is an endangered African great ape found only in the Democratic Republic of Congo. According to the Bonobo Conservation Initiative, bonobos and people share 98 percent of the same genetic make-up. Physically, their anatomy closely resembles Australopithecus, an early human ancestor. Bonobos walk on two feet more easily and for longer periods than other great apes.

The science world acknowledges that bonobos are extraordinarily smart primates.

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WSU Prof Completes Genome Sequence of Great Ape Living With Humans

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