ancient dna from human and animal

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...

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

Ancient DNA and human history.

We review studies of genomic data obtained by sequencing hominin fossils with particular emphasis on the unique information that ancient DNA (aDNA) can provide about the demographic history of humans and our closest relatives. We concentrate on nuclear genomic sequences that have been published in the past few years. In many cases, particularly in the Arctic, the Americas, and Europe, aDNA has ...

Ancient mitochondrial DNA from hair

The DNA content of hair [1,2] is typically low compared to other tissues, as hair cells undergo dehydration and catabolic breakdown of nucleic acids and organelles during keratinisation [3]. As a consequence, ancient hair specimens have not been widely used as a source of ancient DNA. However, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) has been extracted from degraded and old hair samples, including burnt speci...

Genetic analyses from ancient DNA.

About 20 years ago, DNA sequences were separately described from the quagga (a type of zebra) and an ancient Egyptian individual. What made these DNA sequences exceptional was that they were derived from 140- and 2400-year-old specimens. However, ancient DNA research, defined broadly as the retrieval of DNA sequences from museum specimens, archaeological finds, fossil remains, and other unusual...

DNA damage and DNA sequence retrieval from ancient tissues.

Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was used to determine the amounts of eight oxidative base modifications in DNA extracted from 11 specimens of bones and soft tissues, ranging in age from 40 to >50 000 years. Among the compounds assayed hydantoin derivatives of pyrimidines were quantitatively dominant. From five of the specimens endogenous ancient DNA sequences could be amplified by ...