Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.The cockroach that emerged from your sink drain and scuttled under the fridge? The nocturnal critter was most likely a German cockroach, and its ancestors were pestering people more than 2,000 years ago in southern Asia, a new study found.The research, published May 20 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, showed that the insects’ journey from scavenging in ancient Asian civilizations to getting cozy beneath your kitchen floor closely aligns with major historical shifts in global commerce, colonization and war.German cockroaches, scientifically known as Blattella germanica, are ubiquitous in cities in the United States and around the world. The hardy pests first appeared in scientific records from 250 years ago in Europe, hence the German moniker, but little is known about their origin.To figure out how cockroaches got there and spread to other parts of the world, first study author Dr. Qian Tang and his collaborators asked scientists and pest control experts around the globe for local specimens. The research team received 281 German cockroach samples from 57 sites in 17 countries and studied their DNA to trace their evolution.“Our main purpose was to show how a species can travel with humans and how genetics can make up the missing part of historical records,” said Tang, an evolutionary biologist who is now a postdoctoral research associate at Harvard University.Using genomic data from the samples, Tang was surprised to learn that the modern cockroach’s lineage goes back much further than 18th century Europe. The insect evolved from the wild Asian cockroach, scientifically known as Blattella asahinai, 2,100 years ago, according t …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnSign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.The cockroach that emerged from your sink drain and scuttled under the fridge? The nocturnal critter was most likely a German cockroach, and its ancestors were pestering people more than 2,000 years ago in southern Asia, a new study found.The research, published May 20 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, showed that the insects’ journey from scavenging in ancient Asian civilizations to getting cozy beneath your kitchen floor closely aligns with major historical shifts in global commerce, colonization and war.German cockroaches, scientifically known as Blattella germanica, are ubiquitous in cities in the United States and around the world. The hardy pests first appeared in scientific records from 250 years ago in Europe, hence the German moniker, but little is known about their origin.To figure out how cockroaches got there and spread to other parts of the world, first study author Dr. Qian Tang and his collaborators asked scientists and pest control experts around the globe for local specimens. The research team received 281 German cockroach samples from 57 sites in 17 countries and studied their DNA to trace their evolution.“Our main purpose was to show how a species can travel with humans and how genetics can make up the missing part of historical records,” said Tang, an evolutionary biologist who is now a postdoctoral research associate at Harvard University.Using genomic data from the samples, Tang was surprised to learn that the modern cockroach’s lineage goes back much further than 18th century Europe. The insect evolved from the wild Asian cockroach, scientifically known as Blattella asahinai, 2,100 years ago, according t …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
