Mitochondrial DNA analysis of ancient sheep from Altai.

A comparative analysis of the genetic diversity of ancient and modern sheep can shed light on the origin of these animals and their distribution as well as help to evaluate the role of humans at each formation stage of different sheep breeds. Here we isolated ancient DNA and performed sequencing of the mitochondrial DNA D-loop from 17 sheep bone remains (~4000-1000 years old) found in the archaeological complexes in the south of Altai (Western Siberia). The length of the sequences obtained ranged between 318 and 586 bp. The haplotype diversity and nucleotide diversity were 0.801 ± 0.081 and 0.0096 ± 0.0014 respectively. The average number of nucleotide differences was ~3.1. Nucleotide sequence analysis revealed that 15 specimens were nested within previously described A,B,C,D and E lineages and that two specimens had a basal position relative to the rest of the analyzed samples. A relatively high diversity of sheep haplotypes, including the presence of two basal haplotypes, indicates that the Altai region may have been a transport route of human migration. Further ancient DNA analysis of other specimens and deeper genome sequencing of samples with novel haplotypes is needed to better understand the demographic history of sheep in Southern Siberia.

Mitochondrial DNA D-loop haplogroup contributions to the genetic diversity of East European domestic chickens from Russia.

To elucidate geographical and historical aspects of chicken dispersal across Eastern Europe, we analysed the complete mitochondrial DNA D-loop sequence of 86 representatives from chicken breeds traditionally raised in the territory of the East European Plain (Orloff, Pavlov, Russian White, Yurlov Crower, Uzbek Game and Naked Neck). From the 1231-1232 bp D-loop sequence, 35 variable sites that defined 22 haplotypes were identified in modern chicken. All populations, except Uzbek Game, exhibited high values of haplotype and nucleotide diversity suggesting a wide variation in maternal diversity. Inclusion of mtDNA sequences from other European and Asian countries revealed representatives from this study belonging to haplogroups A, E1 and C1. We also assessed fossil chicken material dated to the 9th-18th century from archaeological sites in Northern and Eastern Europe. Three haplotypes found in the fossil specimens belonged to haplogroup E1, while one sample dated to the 18th century was assigned to the C1 haplogroup. This is the first report of the occurrence of the C1 haplogroup in European chicken populations prior to the 20th century based on the fossil material. These results provide evidence for a relatively recent introduction of all haplotypes other than E1 into the East European chicken gene pool with the significant impact of the C1 haplogroup mainly distributed in Southern China.

GENOTYPING AND COAT COLOUR DETECTION OF ANCIENT HORSES FROM BURYATIA.

From genetic point of view, differences between ancient and modern horses can be reconstructed by using the phylogeographic analysis of mitochondrial genomes and by studying phenotypically important nuclear loci. The variety of modern horse coat colors resulted from artificial selection indicates a high degree of domestication. We have conducted the phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA extracted from bone samples of six ancient horses from Tsaramburial in the Republic of Buryatia, and established that they belong to a haplogroup E by Achilli's classification. This haplogroup is found among modern horses of the Maremmano breed from Italy. Gray coat color different from wild type have been detected in two ancient horses, which demonstrates a sufficiently high domestication level of Buryat horses during the period I century BC to I century AD. The analysis of the mitochondrial genome hypervariable region fragments revealed that ancient Buryat horses belong to a haplotype X3 by Cieslak's classification, which is ancestral to the haplogroup X3 of modern horses in Mongolia, Tuva, and Buryatia.

[Ancient DNA: Results and Prospects (the 30th Anniversary)].

Evolutionary genetics has reached a new level of research thanks to the opportunity to study the genomes of not only present-day but also of ancient organisms. The obtaining of reliable data when working with ancient DNA is possible only in the case of interdisciplinary collaboration between archaeologists, paleontologists, molecular geneticists, and bioinformaticians. Despite laborious and high-cost technologies, the results never cease to amaze and can not only fill the gaps in the knowledge of the evolutionary history of different species but can also review the existing ideas on population development and dynamics. In this review, we discuss the history of the development of investigative techniques in ancient DNA research and the most striking results of these studies, including the most recent achievements.

Complete mitochondrial genomes of ancient canids suggest a European origin of domestic dogs.

The geographic and temporal origins of the domestic dog remain controversial, as genetic data suggest a domestication process in East Asia beginning 15,000 years ago, whereas the oldest doglike fossils are found in Europe and Siberia and date to >30,000 years ago. We analyzed the mitochondrial genomes of 18 prehistoric canids from Eurasia and the New World, along with a comprehensive panel of modern dogs and wolves. The mitochondrial genomes of all modern dogs are phylogenetically most closely related to either ancient or modern canids of Europe. Molecular dating suggests an onset of domestication there 18,800 to 32,100 years ago. These findings imply that domestic dogs are the culmination of a process that initiated with European hunter-gatherers and the canids with whom they interacted.