Genetic Genealogy & Ancient DNA (TITLES/ABSTRACTS)

[J1_DYS388=13]

Results are behind a paywall

Ancient DNA and paleoproteomic analysis on Roman Imperial-era individuals from Histria, Romania

Sterling L. Wright et al.

Abstract
Ancient biomolecules have become an increasingly important part of archaeological investigations interested in understanding population movements and health. Despite their ability to elucidate historically-attested contexts of human mobility and interaction between different cultural groups, biomolecular techniques are still underutilized in certain historical and archaeological contexts. One such context is the Roman Imperial limes, or border zone, along the lower reaches of the Danube, which saw more than five hundred years of migration, conflict, and accommodation among a wide range of populations, from Mediterranean settlers to steppe pastoralists. In this region, more than a century of archaeological investigation has unearthed the remains of tens of thousands of Roman-era individuals. However, only a limited number of contexts have undergone biomolecular analyses. While these deceased humans may offer an untapped reservoir of biomolecular information, many were collected during a period when the standard precautions and protocols for ancient biomolecular research were not yet established. Because contamination is a major barrier for successfully recovering ancient DNA and proteins, conducting a pilot study to assess bimolecular preservation of a small representative dataset of human remains before embarking on a more extensive research program may prevent unnecessary sampling. This study applies ancient DNA and paleoproteomic techniques to human remains from a Roman-period cemetery at Histria, a site located just south of the Danube at the edge of the Roman province of Moesia Inferior. The individuals from whom we sampled dentin and dental calculus were excavated between the 1940s and 1980s and were housed at the Francisc J. Rainer Institute since. Our results suggest that both microbial and human ancient DNA is preserved in the dental calculus and dentin samples. We also successfully recovered sex-specific amelogenin peptides in tooth enamel from three individuals, including a juvenile. In conclusion, our results are encouraging, signifying the feasibility of future aDNA and paleoproteomic research for this skeletal collection. Our analyses also showcase how sex estimation with genomic and proteomic methods may contradict traditional osteological approaches. These findings not only offer deeper insights into the lives of these individuals but also show promise for the investigation of broader anthropological questions, such as the impact of Roman annexation in this region.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar...9X2400138X

[FR9CZ6]

A genetic analysis of the 10th century Magyar Necropolis of Przemyśil Rycerska, Poland.

The term Magyars is used to collectively identify the tribes that are thought to arrive and settle in the Carpathian basin in the 9th century AD. A recent genomic study showed that there was remarkable genetic heterogeneity among individuals in Magyar-associated archaeological contexts, despite sharing the same cultural customs. People with mixed eastern and western Eurasian ancestry coexist with non-admixed western ancestry individuals. The questions about the origin of these tribes before their arrival in the Carpathians, their precise ancestry composition and the admixture process are not yet solved. Especially nothing is known about the genetic composition of individuals buried in Magyar contexts outside of Hungary. This work analyzes 12 newly generated genomes from the Magyar-associated site of Przemyśil (Poland) and argues that these individuals belong to an unadmixed, Eastern European-like population, that could have adopted Magyar customs after their arrival in the Carpathian basin.

https://thesis.unipd.it/handle/20.500.12608/52344

[J1_DYS388=13]

Network of large pedigrees reveals social practices of Avar communities

Guido Alberto Gnecchi-Ruscone et al.

Abstract
From AD 567–568, at the onset of the Avar period, populations from the Eurasian Steppe settled in the Carpathian Basin for approximately 250 years1. Extensive sampling for archaeogenomics (424 individuals) and isotopes, combined with archaeological, anthropological and historical contextualization of four Avar-period cemeteries, allowed for a detailed description of the genomic structure of these communities and their kinship and social practices. We present a set of large pedigrees, reconstructed using ancient DNA, spanning nine generations and comprising around 300 individuals. We uncover a strict patrilineal kinship system, in which patrilocality and female exogamy were the norm and multiple reproductive partnering and levirate unions were common. The absence of consanguinity indicates that this society maintained a detailed memory of ancestry over generations. These kinship practices correspond with previous evidence from historical sources and anthropological research on Eurasian Steppe societies2. Network analyses of identity-by-descent DNA connections suggest that social cohesion between communities was maintained via female exogamy. Finally, despite the absence of major ancestry shifts, the level of resolution of our analyses allowed us to detect genetic discontinuity caused by the replacement of a community at one of the sites. This was paralleled with changes in the archaeological record and was probably a result of local political realignment.



https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-07312-4

[teepean]

Ancient genomes reveal insights into ritual life at Chichén Itzá

The ancient city of Chichén Itzá in Yucatán, Mexico was one of the largest and most influential Maya settlements during the Late and Terminal Classic periods (AD 600-1000), and it remains one of the most intensively-studied archaeological sites in Mesoamerica1–4. However, many questions regarding the social and cultural use of its ceremonial spaces, as well as its population’s genetic ties to other Mesoamerican groups, remain unanswered2. Here, we present genome wide data obtained from 64 subadult individuals dating to ca. AD 500-900 that were found in a subterranean mass burial near the Sacred Cenote (sinkhole) in the ceremonial centre of Chichén Itzá. Genetic analyses revealed that all analysed individuals were male, and several individuals were closely related, including two pairs of monozygotic twins. Twins feature prominently in Mayan and broader Mesoamerican mythology, where they embody qualities of duality among deities and heroes5, but until now they had not been identified within ancient Mayan mortuary contexts. Genetic comparison to present day people in the region reveals genetic continuity with the ancient inhabitants of Chichén Itzá, except at certain genetic loci related to human immunity, including the HLA complex, suggesting signals of adaptation due to infectious diseases introduced to the region during the colonial period.

https://www.ebi.ac.uk/ena/browser/view/PRJEB73567

[FR9CZ6]

Palaeogenomic insights into the origins of early settlers on the island of Cyprus

Archaeological evidence supports sporadic seafaring visits to the Eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus by Epipaleolithic hunter-gatherers over 12,000 years ago, followed by permanent settlements during the early Neolithic. The geographical origins of these early seafarers have so far remained elusive. By systematically analysing all available genomes from the late Pleistocene to early Holocene Near East (c. 14,000–7000 cal BCE), we provide a comprehensive overview of the genetic landscape of the early Neolithic Fertile Crescent and Anatolia and infer the likely origins of three recently published genomes from Kissonerga-Mylouthkia (Cypriot Late Pre-Pottery Neolithic B, c. 7600–6800 cal BCE). These appear to derive roughly 80% of their ancestry from Aceramic Neolithic Central Anatolians residing in or near the Konya plain, and the remainder from a genetically basal Levantine population. Based on genome-wide weighted ancestry covariance analysis, we infer that this admixture event took place roughly between 14,000 and 10,000 BCE, coinciding with the transition from the Cypriot late Epipaleolithic to the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA). Additionally, we identify strong genetic affinities between the examined Cypro-LPPNB individuals and later northwestern Anatolians and the earliest European Neolithic farmers. Our results inform archaeological evidence on prehistoric demographic processes in the Eastern Mediterranean, providing important insights into early seafaring, maritime connections, and insular settlement.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-60161-z

[JMcB]

Published: 24 April 2024


Patrilineal segmentary systems provide a peaceful explanation for the post-Neolithic Y-chromosome bottleneck

Léa Guyon, Jérémy Guez, Bruno Toupance, Evelyne Heyer & Raphaëlle Chaix


Abstract

Studies have found a pronounced decline in male effective population sizes worldwide around 3000–5000 years ago. This bottleneck was not observed for female effective population sizes, which continued to increase over time. Until now, this remarkable genetic pattern was interpreted as the result of an ancient structuring of human populations into patrilineal groups (gathering closely related males) violently competing with each other. In this scenario, violence is responsible for the repeated extinctions of patrilineal groups, leading to a significant reduction in male effective population size. Here, we propose an alternative hypothesis by modelling a segmentary patrilineal system based on anthropological literature. We show that variance in reproductive success between patrilineal groups, combined with lineal fission (i.e., the splitting of a group into two new groups of patrilineally related individuals), can lead to a substantial reduction in the male effective population size without resorting to the violence hypothesis. Thus, a peaceful explanation involving ancient changes in social structures, linked to global changes in subsistence systems, may be sufficient to explain the reported decline in Y-chromosome diversity.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-0...oDc4ArNxxt

[ChrisR]

I was notified about the following Presentation by ResearchGate (autotranslated):

The CELTUDALPS project: new perspectives on spatial mobility and genetic variation in Switzerland and northern Italy during the Late Iron Age.

    March 2024

    Conference: AGUS-GPS Jahrversammlung, Bern, Switzerland

    Marco Milella, Zita Laffranchi, Sandra Lösch, Valentina Coia, Stefania Zingale, Alice Paladin, Albert R Zink

Discussion of major biocultural trends in Europe during the Late Iron Age can benefit from a continuous supply of biogeochemical and biomolecular data. Compared to other geographical areas, however, there are still few data available on genetic variability and spatial mobility' in the territories of Switzerland and northern Italy during this period. The goal of the CELTUDALPS project is to investigate these issues through the multidisciplinary analysis of a large skeletal sample (approximately 500 individuals) representing La Tène cultural groups in Switzerland and northern Italy between the 4th and 1st centuries BC. Through genetic, isotopic and funerary analyses CELTUDALPS aims to:(a) estimate the differences and similarities in spatial mobility among the various contexts analyzed; (b) reconstruct their genetic variability and history; and © explore the links between mobility, kinship relations and social structure. In this talk, we introduce the theoretical background of our research and discuss the cultural, social, and biological relevance of the initial findings from the Swiss sample project.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication..._del_Ferro

Original in Italian:

Il progetto CELTUDALPS: nuove prospettive sulla mobilità territoriale e la variazione genetica in Svizzera ed Italia settentrionale durante la tarda età del Ferro.

La discussione delle maggiori tendenze bioculturali in Europa durante la tarda età del Ferro può giovarsi di un continuo apporto di dati biogeochimici e biomolecolari. Rispetto ad altre aree geografiche, tuttavia, sono ancora pochi i dati disponibili sulla variabilità genetica e mobilità' territoriale nei territori della Svizzera e dell'Italia settentrionale durante questo periodo. L'obiettivo del progetto CELTUDALPS è approfondire questi temi attraverso l'analisi multidisciplinare di un ampio campione scheletrico (circa 500 individui) che rappresenta gruppi culturali La Tène in Svizzera e Italia settentrionale tra il IV e il I secolo a.C. Attraverso analisi genetiche, isotopiche e funerarie CELTUDALPS si propone di: (a) stimare le differenze e le somiglianze nella mobilità territoriale tra i vari contesti analizzati; (b) ricostruire la loro variabilità e storia genetiche; © esplorare i nessi tra mobilità, rapporti di parentela e struttura sociale. In questo intervento introduciamo lo sfondo teorico della nostra ricerca e discutiamo la rilevanza culturale, sociale, e biologica dei primi risultati emersi dal progetto sul campione svizzero.

[Capsian20]

Isotopic evidence of high reliance on plant food among Later Stone Age hunter-gatherers at Taforalt, Morocco

Abstract
The transition from hunting-gathering to agriculture stands as one of the most important dietary revolutions in human history. Yet, due to a scarcity of well-preserved human remains from Pleistocene sites, little is known about the dietary practices of pre-agricultural human groups. Here we present the isotopic evidence of pronounced plant reliance among Late Stone Age hunter-gatherers from North Africa (15,000–13,000 cal BP), predating the advent of agriculture by several millennia. Employing a comprehensive multi-isotopic approach, we conducted zinc (δ66Zn) and strontium (87Sr/86Sr) analysis on dental enamel, bulk carbon (δ13C) and nitrogen (δ15N) and sulfur (δ34S) isotope analysis on dentin and bone collagen, and single amino acid analysis on human and faunal remains from Taforalt (Morocco). Our results unequivocally demonstrate a substantial plant-based component in the diets of these hunter-gatherers. This distinct dietary pattern challenges the prevailing notion of high reliance on animal proteins among pre-agricultural human groups. It also raises intriguing questions surrounding the absence of agricultural development in North Africa during the early Holocene. This study underscores the importance of investigating dietary practices during the transition to agriculture and provides insights into the complexities of human subsistence strategies across different regions.


https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-024-02382-z

[Radko]

Unveiling Hunnic legacy: Decoding elite presence in Poland through a unique child’s burial with modified cranium

Highlights
• Skull deformation insights – rare Hun practices discovered in Southern Poland.
• Genetic diversity in double grave demonstrates European and Asian ancestry.
• Radiocarbon dates indicate the early presence of Huns north of the Carpathians.
• Mortuary practices reveal the different social positions of Hunnic and local children.
• Children buried in grave with a dog, cat, and crow serving as their companion animals.

Abstract
This article presents a double burial from Czulice indicating elements of the Hunnic culture. Individual I, aged 7–9, and Individual II, aged 8–9 with a skull deformation, were both genetically identified as boys. Individual II, who exhibited genetic affinity to present day Asian populations, was equipped with gold and silver items. In contrast, Individual I displayed European ancestry. The application of strontium isotope analysis shed light on the origins of the individuals. Individual I was non-local, while Individual II was identified as a local, but also falling within the range commonly associated with the Pannonian Plain. Stable isotope analysis suggested a diet consisting of inland resources. Through radiocarbon dating, this burial was determined to date back to the years 395–418 CE, making it the earliest grave of its kind discovered in Poland. The analyses have provided new insights into the nature of the relationship between the Huns and the local inhabitants.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/ar...9X24001913

[Manofthehour]

Doctoral thesis: Palaeogenetic analyses on human ancient remains. The Etruscans from Felsina and surroundings: genomic evidence from the Po Valley during the Etruscan period

https://www.repository.unipr.it/handle/1889/5272

"During the Early Iron Age (9th-8th century BCE), the Etruscan civilization flourished in a large area of central Italy with local expansions into neighboring regions, such as Campania and the Po Valley. Palaeogenomic evidence from over 50 ancient human remains coming from necropolyses associated to the Etruscan city of Felsina (present-day Bologna) and dated between the 8th and 6th century BCE (Hallstatt phase), allows to define for the first time the genetic profile of the Etruscan community of the Po Valley area. Archaeological findings show clear evidence of extensive contacts between the Etruscans of Felsina and Celtic-related groups from the Early Iron Age onwards. The newly generated genomic data help to investigate the dynamics underlying the relationship between these two culturally distinct groups and to evaluate the resulting biological impact on the genetic makeup of Felsina. To further explore this point, additional samples from the Po Valley and dated to the Gallic migration period (4th-3rd century BCE, La Tène phase) were added to the dataset. Although most of the Etruscan samples from Bologna carry a local genetic profile, a significative and heterogeneous fraction of the analysed individuals show a high genetic affinity to ancient central and northern European populations. Unexpectedly, almost all the samples coming from the more recent necropolises show an autochthonous signal. Radiocarbon dating revealed the presence of a few individuals belonging to the Roman Imperial period that are are genetically distinct from the previous Iron Age samples, showing an increased affinity to ancient groups from the Caucasus and, in one single case, to subsaharan Africa."

[RCO]

ARCHEOGENOMICS OF HUMANS FROM THE UPPER VOLGA LAYER CULTURE - THE GREATEST GENETIC SIMILARITY WITH EASTERN EUROPEAN HUNTER-GATHERERS AND ANCIENT REPRESENTATIVES OF MESOLITHIC/NEOLITHIC EUROPE

http://ipdn.ru/_private/a64/113-125.pdf
https://nplus1.ru/news/2024/03/09/upper-volga-culture

Archaeogenomics of humans from the layer of the Upper Volga Culture revealed their greatest genetic similarity with Eastern European hunter-gatherers and ancient representatives of Mesolithic/Neolithic Europe The genetic structure of the population of Northern Europe of the Mesolithic-Neolithic period currently remains poorly investigated due to the small number of materials available for research. For the first time, the complete genome of an individual from the multilayer Meso-Neolithic site Ivanovskoe VII, located in the Upper Volga region in Yaroslavl Oblast, was studied. According to stratigraphic data, an isolated skull of an adult male without a lower jaw was found in layer II containing ceramics of the Upper Volga Early Neolithic Culture. AMS date obtained from the scull bone. The calibrated age of the collagen sample was determined with a probability of 1σ (68 %) in the interval 6588–6498 cal.y.b. (UGAMS-67431 OxCal v4.4), wich corresponds to the Late Mesolithic. The dates of the peat containing layer II of the culture lie between 6000 and 7000 radiocarbon years ago. The main aim of the study is to elucidate the position of this individual in the context of the genomic landscape of Mesolithic and Neolithic Europe. It is shown that the genetic profile of the studied individual (DM5) fully coincides with the genetic diversity profile of the Eastern Hunter-Gatherers (EHG). Haplogroups of mitochondrial DNA (U5a2+16294) and Y-chromosome (R1b1a1) testify to its genetic connection with ancient Mesolithic populations of Europe. The DM5 sample has an additional substitution at position 54 of mtDNA in common with the most ancient samples of this mitochondrial haplogroup from the territory of Western Europe (England and France), which suggests the existence of a probable ancestor belonging to an even earlier period (Late Paleolithic), possibly on the territory of Western Europe. Specimen DM5 is clustered together with several ancient territorially and chronologically separated groups. First, with representatives of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers of northern Eastern Europe (South Oleniy Island, Karelia; Minino I and II, Vologda region; Peschanitsa, and Popovo, Arkhangelsk region). Second, DM5 is similar to Early Mesolithic materials from the Middle Volga region — the oldest representative of Mesolithic hunter-gatherers from Sidelkino and an Eneolithic specimen from Lebyazhinka, Samara region. Third, in the cluster of individuals close to DM5 there are representatives of later groups — from the Early Neolithic Yazykovo I, Tver region, Middle Neolithic Karavaikha, Vologda region and Eneolithic layers of the Murzikhinsky II burial ground, which is located near the village of Alekseevskoye (Tatarstan) in the mouth of the Kama River. The data we obtained do not exclude that the Early Eneolithic Upper Volga Culture has local Mesolithic roots, which indicates the long-term preservation of the oldest gene pool of Europe in the central part of the Russian Plain. Keywords: archaeogenomics, Eastern Europe, Upper Volga Culture, genome of eastern hunter-gatherers, Late Mesolithic, Early Neolithic. Funding. The work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, system number 075-10-2020-116 (Grant Number 13.1902.21.0023). 

Haplogroups of mitochondrial DNA (U5a2+16294) and Y-chromosome (R1b1a1) - EHG

[teepean]

Cold adaptation in Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherers of eastern Eurasia

Abstract

Previous genomic studies understanding the dispersal of Homo sapiens have suggested that present-day East Eurasians and Native Americans can trace their ancestry to migrations from Southeast Asia. However, ineluctable adaptations during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) remain unclear. By analyzing 42 genomes of up to 30-fold coverage from prehistoric hunter-gatherers, Jomon, we reveal their descent from Upper Paleolithic (UP) foragers who migrated to and isolated in the Japanese archipelago during Late Pleistocene. We provide compelling evidence suggesting that these UP people underwent positive selection for cold environments, aiding their survival through the LGM facilitated by non-shivering thermogenesis and detecting it polygenically across multiple loci in the Jomon lineage. Our study pioneers the close estimation of the physiological adaptation of ancient humans by the paleogenomic approach.

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/...91810v1?ct=

Could not find the data but it should be available at some point.

All raw genomic data (fastq files) are available for download in the DNA DataBank of
Japan (DDBJ) Sequence Read Archive (DRA. https://www.ddbj.nig.ac.jp/index-e.html)
under the accession numbers PRJDB14637, PRJDB18003 and PRJDB18005.

[VladMC]

“Lost Child” or Vanguard? Linking Fatyanovo Population with Middle Volga Abashevo Culture using Ancient DNA Sequencing Data

High-throughput sequencing of ancient DNA from Fatyanovo and Abashevo cultures (7 and 3 men, respectively) has led to new hypotheses about their origin and contacts. According to published archaeological evidence, i. e., due to striking similarities between the grave goods discovered in the Middle Volga Abashevo burial complexes and those found in the bell-shaped beaker culture, it is believed that the Fatyanovo people may have descended from the Corded Ware Culture.
The present study demonstrates, for the first time, the remarkable similarity between the Fatyanovo people, as represented by the Volosovo-Danilovsky and Nikultsino burial grounds in the Yaroslavl region, and three distinct cultural groups: a) the Corded Culture People, primarily from Bohemia and Germany, b) the Bell-Beaker cultures, found in the same region as well as in France and the Netherlands, and c) the bearers of the Unetice culture. Furthermore, the Abashevite from the Pepkino mound (burial id 18) is genetically similar to several Fatyanovo individuals from the Volosovo-Danilovsky and Nikultsino burial grounds. Finally, the new set of AMS-radiocarbon dates has helped to narrow down the chronological gap between the Fatyanovo and Abashevo people’s expansion towards the Upper and Middle Volga regions, thereby indicating a direct contact between these two groups. Therefore, we can hypothesize that the highly mobile and dispersed lifestyle intrinsic to cattle-breeders may have led to the reclamation of vast territories in the east while still maintaining close ties with their ancestral lands.
In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that the Fatyanovo and Abashevo people likely originate from the same genetic background and are integral parts of the Corded Culture world, rather than “lost children” as previously assumed.

behind the pay wall

https://www.e-anthropology.com/English/C...0dFp5.aspx