Ten years of ancient genome analysis has taught scientists ‘what it means to be human’
A ball of 4,000-year-old hair frozen in time tangled around a whalebone comb led to the first ever reconstruction of an ancient human genome just over a decade ago.
Bronze Age migrations changed societal organisation and genomic landscape in Italy
A new study from the Institute of Genomics of the University of Tartu, Estonia has shed light on the genetic prehistory of populations in modern day Italy through the analysis of ancient human individuals during the Chalcolithic/Bronze Age transition around 4,000 years ago.
200-year-old poop shows rural elites in New England had parasitic infections
In the early 19th century in North America, parasitic infections were quite common in urban areas due in part to population growth and urbanization.
Recolonisation of Europe after the last ice age started earlier than previously thought
A study that appeared today on Current Biology sheds new light on the continental migrations which shaped the genetic background of all present Europeans.
Ancient Genomes Trace the Origin & Decline of the Scythians
Because of their interactions and conflicts with the major contemporaneous civilizations of Eurasia, the Scythians enjoy a legendary status in historiography and popular culture.
The Human Brain Grew as a Result of the Extinction of Large Animals
A new paper by Dr. Miki Ben-Dor and Prof. Ran Barkai from the Jacob M. Alkow Department of Archaeology at Tel Aviv University proposes an original unifying explanation for the physiological, behavioral and cultural evolution of the human species, from its first appearance about two million years ago, to the agricultural revolution (around 10,000 BCE).
Disease Tolerance: Skeletons Reveal Humans Evolved to Fight Pathogens
A new skeleton study is reconstructing ancient pandemics to assess human's evolutionary ability to fight off leprosy, tuberculosis and treponematoses, with help from declining rates of transmission when the germs became widespread.
Neanderthals’ Faecal Sediments Reveals How Gut Microbiota Benefits Our Health
Neanderthals'' gut microbiota already included some beneficial micro-organisms that are also found in our own intestine.
Ancient DNA Analysis Reveals Asian Migration and Plague
Northeastern Asia has a complex history of migrations and plague outbursts. That is the essence of an international archaeogenetic study published in Science Advances and lead from the Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies at Stockholm University.
The ABCs of Species Evolution
Almost four decades of research have led scientists at Japan's Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) to propose that a family of transporter proteins has played an important role in species evolution.
Ancient DNA Retells Story of Caribbean’s First People
The history of the Caribbean's original islanders comes into sharper focus in a new Nature study that combines decades of archaeological work with advancements in genetic technology.
Researchers Track and Analyze Smallpox Epidemics Over Three Centuries
Researchers from McMaster University have studied and analyzed thousands of weekly records documenting the deaths of smallpox victims in London, England over the span of nearly 300 years.
The Impact of Neandertal DNA on Human Health
A researcher at the University of Tartu described new associations between Neandertal DNA and autoimmune diseases, prostate cancer and type 2 diabetes.
New Research Traces the Origins of Trench Fever
First observed among British Expeditionary Forces in 1915, trench fever sickened an estimated 500,000 soldiers during World War I.
Scientists Find Medieval Plague Outbreaks Picked up Speed Over 300 Years
McMaster University researchers who analyzed thousands of documents covering a 300-year span of plague outbreaks in London, England, have estimated that the disease spread four times faster in the 17th century than it had in the 14th century.
