He is also the founder of the Center for Stem Cell Biology and Tissue Engineering at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, China.
[7] Lahn's previous research has led to the hypothesis that the Neanderthals contributed to evolution of the human brain's size.
His research on the microcephaly-associated gene, MCPH1, led to the hypothesis that an archaic Homo sapiens lineage such as the Neanderthals might have contributed to the recent development of the human brain.
[8] His research also suggested that newly arisen variants of two brain size genes, ASPM and MCPH1, might have been favored by positive natural selection in recent human history.
[11] Later studies did not find the ASPM and MCPH1 gene variants identified by Lahn to be associated with mental ability or cognition in modern populations,[12][13][14] and the haplotype was not found in the individuals used to prepare the first draft of the Neanderthal genome.