Doest it mean "from"? The writer wants to conclude that human brain is asymmetrical from the outset of existence:
About 90 percent of modern humans are right-handed: we are the only mammal with a preferential use of one hand. The part of the brain responsible for fine control and movement is located in the left cerebral hemisphere, and the findings above suggest that the human brain was already asymmetrical in its structure and function not long after 23 million years ago.