Tag

Ancient Dna

All articles tagged with #ancient dna

science3 days ago•6 min saved

Ancient DNA Rewrites Europe’s Post-Rome Story

A multinational study of genomes from over 300 individuals in the Little Hungarian Plain shows a shift from southern to northern European ancestry after Rome’s fall, linked to the Lombard expansion. The findings reveal complex, localized population movements that produced diverse, hierarchical post-Roman societies rather than a single mass migration or simple conquest, highlighting that material culture and genetic ancestry can diverge as newcomers integrated with local populations.

via SciTechDaily|

#ancient-dna #archaeology #genetics

science4 days ago•206 min saved

400-year-old Polish grave reveals feared revenant linked to a wealthy lineage

Archaeologists uncover a 400-year-old grave near Pień, Poland, of a 17–19-year-old girl buried with a sickle over her throat and a toe padlock to stop her rising, plus a copper-gold object in her mouth. Ancient DNA and isotopes suggest she was locally raised and likely from a wealthy family with possible Scandinavian maternal links; the site features other deviant burials reflecting fears of the dead, and researchers plan further DNA work to learn more about her death and beliefs surrounding revenants.

via CNN|

#ancient-dna #archaeology #isotopes

science13 days ago•5 min saved

Chilean mummy DNA traces post‑contact arrival of smallpox in the Americas

Genetic analysis of 13 bone samples from the Camarones site in northern Chile uncovered two smallpox infections dating to 1492–1631, providing the strongest evidence yet that smallpox arrived in the Americas after European contact; researchers say the virus could have spread via established Native trade networks or through Africa during the slave trade, and note that smallpox was eradicated in 1980.

via Fox News|

#ancient-dna #camarones #chile

human-history22 days ago•16 min saved

Ancient Chilean Mummies Illuminate How Smallpox Reached the Americas

New DNA analysis of two late 15th–early 17th‑century Chilean mummies uncovered a lost variola (smallpox) strain, providing the first molecular evidence that Europeans carried smallpox to the Americas during colonization and revealing how the virus evolved when Indigenous populations had little immunity; the study also notes how vaccination by Jenner eventually slowed the virus, contributing to its global eradication.

via Gizmodo|

#ancient-dna #colonization #human-history

science24 days ago•11 min saved

Ancient DNA Rewrites Tarim Mummies' Origins: Local Xinjiang Inhabitants, Not European Travelers

Genome analysis of Tarim Basin mummies (ca. 2100–1700 BC) shows they were a long-isolated local population in western China, with about 72% Ancient North Eurasian and 28% Northeast Asian ancestry, overturning the idea that Western-looking features indicated European origins. Some individuals nearby carried Afanasievo ancestry, but the broader group remained distinct; their culture was cosmopolitan (dairy from West Asia, millet from East Asia, ephedra) and linked to later Tocharian writing, illustrating that appearance is not a reliable indicator of origin.

via Space Daily|

#afanasievo #ancient-dna #science

science25 days ago•7 min saved

Africa’s ghost lineage left a subtle DNA imprint on all modern humans

A Berkeley-led study using ancestral recombination graphs and a new tool called TRACE detected a third, “ghost” lineage that interbred with early modern humans in Africa before the out‑of‑Africa migration. This lineage contributes roughly 0.5–1.1% of today’s genomes (about 1.5 billion bases) across populations, with older, less-recombined DNA found in African groups and in regions called deserts where Neanderthal/Denisovan DNA is scarce. The research also suggests a possible “superarchaic” introgression into Denisovans, but the biological impact of these archaic segments remains unclear.

via Ars Technica|

#ancient-dna #ghost-lineage #human-evolution

science26 days ago•142 min saved

Ancient 'ghost' lineages embedded in every human genome, new study finds

A new method scans 500+ present‑day human genomes and reconstructs ancestral genealogies to reveal two previously unknown archaic lineages contributed to modern humans: a widespread 'ghost' lineage that left about 0.5%–1% of genomes in all people (likely from Homo heidelbergensis) and a 'super‑archaic' lineage dating to around 1.8 million years ago that is found in Oceanian genomes within Denisovan DNA at about 0.002%, implying interbreeding with extinct relatives far earlier in our history. The approach does not require fossil DNA and reinforces a view of human evolution as a web of repeated interbreeding rather than a simple branching tree. Published in Science (2026) by Moorjani and colleagues.

via Live Science|

#ancient-dna #ghost-lineages #human-evolution

science26 days ago•17 min saved

Ancient Smallpox Genomes Hint at Less Deadly Strains in 16th-Century Chile

Researchers analyzing 500-year-old Chilean skeletons have recovered ancient smallpox genomes, the first from the Americas, suggesting early strains may have been less deadly than later global variants and offering clues about how the virus evolved before it became a worldwide killer (study published in Science).

via The New York Times|

#ancient-dna #genomics #infectious-disease

science28 days ago•5 min saved

Ancient DNA Links Malaria to Medici Grand Duke’s 1587 Death

A Yale-led study of ancient DNA from Francesco I de’ Medici and his brother Giovanni reveals malaria parasites in their remains, concluding Francesco’s 1587 death was likely due to malaria rather than poisoning and dispelling centuries of poisoning rumors.

via New York Post|

#ancient-dna #italy #malaria

science29 days ago•8 min saved

Ancient DNA refutes Medici poisoning theory, malaria blamed for Francesco I

Yale researchers used ancient DNA from Francesco I de' Medici and his brother Giovanni to test centuries-old poisoning rumors; they found genetic traces of Plasmodium falciparum and other malaria parasites in the remains, indicating Francesco’s 1587 death was likely due to malaria rather than poisoning and illustrating how genomic analysis can resolve historic mysteries and illuminate parasite evolution.

via Fox News|

#ancient-dna #malaria #medici

archaeology1 month ago•103 min saved

Ancient DNA overturns Bronze Age stereotypes: Stonehenge-era shaman identified as female

Genetic testing of the 4,000-year-old burial known as the Upton Lovell Shaman near Stonehenge shows the individual was female (XX chromosomes), not male, challenging long-held views of Bronze Age metalworkers and leaders. The richly equipped grave—including goldworking tools, a touchstone, and ceremonial objects—suggests she was a high-status metalworker and shaman. The find, highlighted ahead of a new exhibition at the Francis Crick Institute, broadens our understanding of women's roles in Early Bronze Age society.

via Live Science|

#ancient-dna #archaeology #bronze-age

science1 month ago•5 min saved

Ancient DNA Traces Malaria Behind 16th-Century Medici Death

Ancient DNA analysis of Grand Duke Francesco de Medici's remains confirms malaria, not poisoning, as the cause of his 1587 death; the study also finds Plasmodium DNA in his brother Giovanni, identifies two parasite species and a potentially new P. falciparum strain, and uses the findings to map malaria's historical spread and evolution in Renaissance Italy.

via ScienceAlert|

#ancient-dna #iscience #malaria

science1 month ago•198 min saved

Ancient DNA Points to Malaria as Medici Deaths’ Cause

New DNA analysis of Medici tombs found traces of malaria (Plasmodium falciparum and P. malariae) in Francesco I de’ Medici and his brother Giovanni, suggesting malaria, not murder, killed the couple and possibly clarifying a long-running arsenic-poisoning debate; the findings illuminate the evolution and spread of malaria in Renaissance Italy.

via CNN|

#ancient-dna #malaria #medici-family

science1 month ago•133 min saved

Ancient African DNA survives up to 50,000 years, reshaping paleogenomics

DNA extracted from a 50,000-year-old mountain reedbuck tooth in South Africa is the oldest sub-Saharan African DNA recovered to date, with additional Late Pleistocene specimens (including a 42,000-year-old wildebeest genome from Ethiopia) showing usable genetic material despite contamination and uneven preservation; the findings suggest Africa's climate can preserve DNA much longer than previously thought and expand windows for studying both animal and human evolution, though older hominin DNA remains elusive.

via Live Science|

#africa #ancient-dna #archaeology

science1 month ago•5 min saved

Ancient DNA Traces Population Swap Behind Europe’s Megalith Collapse

DNA from a 5,000-year-old tomb near Paris shows a dramatic population collapse around 3000 BC, after which the original megalith builders were largely replaced by newcomers from the south, accompanied by social changes and evidence of multiple crises including disease (plague) rather than a single cause.

via ScienceDaily|

#ancient-dna #megaliths #paris-basin