Short answers, pulled from the story.
Denny refers to a first-generation hybrid female hominin discovered from bone fragment DC1227 in Denisova Cave. Genetic analysis confirmed she was nearly half Neanderthal and half Denisovan, making her the only known example of such an interbreeding event between these two archaic human groups.
Russian archaeologists unearthed the single bone fragment in 2012 during excavations at layer 12 of the East Gallery in Siberia's Altai Mountains. Scientists later extracted DNA samples from this specimen in 2016 and published their findings regarding the hybrid individual in 2018.
The fossil remains were located in layer 12 of the East Gallery within Denisova Cave situated in Siberia's Altai Mountains. The site has been occupied by various hominin groups including Denisovans and Neanderthals from approximately 300,000 to 20,000 years ago according to chronology data published in January 2019.
Direct radiocarbon dating estimated the specimen to be older than 50,000 years while genomic reconstruction placed her life roughly 90,000 years ago. This age places her existence well before the period when modern humans began migrating into Eurasia.
Her mitochondrial DNA indicates a Neanderthal mother whose genetic sequences match those found at Vindija Cave in Croatia. Her nuclear DNA traces back to a Denisovan father who also carried some Neanderthal ancestry himself inherited hundreds of generations prior to his lifetime.