Life Sciences Commons^™

Origins Of An Unmarked Georgia Cemetery Using Ancient Dna Analysis, Andrew T. Ozga, Raúl Y. Tito, Brian M. Kemp, Hugh Matternes, Alexandra Obregon-Tito, Leslie Neal, Cecil M. Lewis, Jr.

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Determining the origins of those buried within undocumented cemeteries is of incredible importance to historical archaeologists and in many cases, the nearby communities. In the case of Avondale Burial Place, a cemetery in Bibb County, Georgia, in use from 1820 to 1950, all written documentation of those interred within it has been lost. Osteological and archaeological evidence alone could not describe, with confidence, the ancestral origins of the 101 individuals buried there. In the present study, we utilize ancient DNA extraction methods to investigate the origins of Avondale Burial Place through the use of well-preserved skeletal fragments from 20 individuals …

Evolution And Otitis Media: A Review, And A Model To Explain High Prevalence In Indigenous Populations, Mahmood F. Bhutta

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Inflammation of the middle ear (otitis media) comprises a group of disorders that are highly prevalent in childhood, and indeed are amongst the most common disorders of childhood. Otitis media is also heritable, and has effects on fecundity. This means that otitis media is subject to evolution, yet the evolutionary selection forces that may determine susceptibility to otitis media have never been adequately explored.

Here I undertake a critical analysis of evolutionary forces that may determine susceptibility to middle ear inflammation. These forces include those determining function of the middle ear, those affecting host immunity, and those affecting colonization by, …

Mongolians In The Genetic Landscape Of Central Asia: Exploring The Genetic Relations Among Mongolians And Other World Populations, Jane E. Brissenden, Judith R. Kidd, Baigalmaa Evsanaa, Ariunaa Togtokh, Andrew J. Pakstis, Françoise Friedlaender, Kenneth K. Kidd, Janet M. Roscoe

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Genetic data on North Central Asian populations are underrepresented in the literature, especially autosomal markers. In the present study we use 812 single nucleotide polymorphisms that are distributed across all the human autosomes and that have been extensively studied at Yale to examine the affinities of two recently collected, samples of populations: rural and cosmopolitan Mongolians from Ulaanbaatar and nomadic, Turkic-speaking Tsaatan from Mongolia near the Siberian border. We compare these two populations to one another and to a global set of populations and discuss their relationships to New World populations. Specifically, we analyze data on 521 autosomal loci (single …

Hemochromatosis: Niche Construction And The Genetic Domino Effect In The European Neolithic, John M. Mccullough, Kathleen M. Heath, Alexis M. Smith

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Hereditary hemochromatosis (HH) is caused by a potentially lethal recessive gene (HFE, C282Y allele) that increases iron absorption and reaches polymorphic levels in Northern European populations. Because persons carrying the allele absorb iron more readily than non-carriers, it has often been suggested HFE is an adaptation to anemia. We hypothesize positive selection for HFE began during or after the European Neolithic with the adoption of an iron-deficient high grain and dairying diet and consequent anemia, a finding confirmed in Neolithic and later European skeletons. HFE frequency compared with rate of lactase persistence in Eurasia yields a positive linear …

Identification Of Whole Mitochondrial Genomes From Venezuela And Implications On Regional Phylogenies In South America, Esther J. Lee, D. Andrew Merriwether

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Recent studies have expanded and refined the founding haplogroups of the Americas using whole mitochondrial (mtDNA) genome analysis. In addition to pan-American lineages, a number of studies have identified specific variants that show higher frequencies in restricted geographical areas. In order to further characterize Native American maternal lineages and specifically examine local patterns within South America, we analyzed twelve maternally unrelated Yekuana whole mtDNA genomes from one village (Sharamaña) that include the four major Native American haplogroups A2, B2, C1, and D1. Our study proposes a reconfiguration of one subhaplogroup A2 (A2aa) that is specific to South America and identifies …

Mitochondrial Dna Suggests A Western Eurasian Origin For Ancient (Proto-) Bulgarians, D V. Nesheva, S Karachanak-Yankova, M Lari, Y Yordanov, A Galabov, David Caramelli, Draga Toncheva

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Ancient (proto-) Bulgarians have long been thought to as a Turkic population. However, evidence found in the past three decades show that this is not the case. Until now, this evidence does not include ancient mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis. In order to fill this void, we have collected human remains from the VIII-X century AD located in three necropolises in Bulgaria: Nojarevo (Silistra region) and Monastery of Mostich (Shumen region), both in Northeast Bulgaria and Tuhovishte (Satovcha region) in Southwest Bulgaria. The phylogenetic analysis of 13 ancient DNA samples (extracted from teeth) identified 12 independent haplotypes, which we further classified …