| Traces of Neanderthal DNA discovered in Ozzy Osbourne's genes
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Traces of Neanderthal DNA discovered in Ozzy Osbourne's genes
By: Russell Mills
Last July, scientists began mapping the genome of a legendary rock singer whose predilection for drugs and alcohol has led many -- including himself -- to wonder how he could have survived as long as he has.
Part of the answer of Ozzy Osbourne's stubborn survival may lie within his genetic makeup, which includes traces of Neanderthal ancestry.
NeanderTal or NeanderTHal? Either, really... click here for more info
Yes, that sentence included the words "Neanderthal ancestry," and it's no joke. Scientific American published an article in May of this year which states unequivocally that Neanderthals and early humans bred, and that large segments of the population in Europe and Asia still bear traces of Neanderthal DNA to this day.
Ozzy apparently balked at the idea of having his genome mapped initially, but later changed his mind.
"I was curious," he wrote in his column published in the Sunday Times of London. "Given the swimming pools of booze I've guzzled over the years—not to mention all of the cocaine, morphine, sleeping pills, cough syrup, LSD, Rohypnol…you name it—there's really no plausible medical reason why I should still be alive. Maybe my DNA could say why."
The Godfather of Heavy Metal has ancestral ties with some famous figures of history, including the outlaw Jesse James, the Russian Tsar Nicholas II, and King George I of England. He also shares DNA with some of the Romans killed in Pompeii when Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 CE.
'That means I'm also probably related to some of the survivors, which makes a lot of sense," Osbourne joked when learning of his ties to the Roman volcano victims. "If any of the Roman Osbournes drank nearly as much as I used to, they wouldn't have even felt the lava. They could have just walked it off.'
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