Where are the Caribs? Ancient DNA from ceramic period human remains in the Lesser Antilles

Where are the Caribs? Ancient DNA from ceramic period human remains in the Lesser Antilles.

The identity and history of the indigenous groups who occupied the Lesser Antilles during the ceramic periods remain highly controversial. Although recent archaeological evidence has challenged hypotheses concerning the organization of human groups in this region, more biological data are needed to fully inform the discussion. Our study provides, to our knowledge, the first palaeogenetic data f...

Extraction and Analysis of Ancient DNA from Human Remains of Masjede Kabood Burial Site

Ancient DNA from Human and Animal

Research on ancient DNA (aDNA) has the potential to enable molecular biologists and archeologists to decipher certain aspects of history by direct looking into the past. However, several major problems in this field limit the applicability of aDNA studies, most importantly contamination with modern DNA and postmortem DNA degradation. In this study we extracted and analyzed aDNA obtained from ~3...

Authenticated DNA from ancient wood remains.

BACKGROUND The reconstruction of biological processes and human activities during the last glacial cycle relies mainly on data from biological remains. Highly abundant tissues, such as wood, are candidates for a genetic analysis of past populations. While well-authenticated DNA has now been recovered from various fossil remains, the final 'proof' is still missing for wood, despite some promisin...

Authenticating DNA Extracted From Ancient Skeletal Remains

The survival of DNA, the most informative biological molecule, for periods of at least several thousand years in bone was demonstrated more than four years ago. However, difficulties with authenticating ancient DNA have made diagenetic studies problematic. It is therefore essential that these problems be overcome before the question of DNA survival can be addressed. Here we describe our work wi...