A genomic Neolithic time transect of hunter-farmer admixture in central Poland

Abstract

Ancient DNA genome-wide analyses of Neolithic individuals from central and southern Europe indicate an overall population turnover pattern in which migrating farmers from Anatolia and the Near East largely replaced autochthonous Mesolithic hunter-gatherers. However, the genetic history of the Neolithic transition in areas lying north of the European Neolithic core region involved different levels of admixture with hunter-gatherers. Here we analyse genome-wide data of 17 individuals spanning from the Middle Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age (4300-1900 BCE) in order to assess the Neolithic transition in north-central Poland, and the local impacts of hunter-farmer contacts and Late Neolithic steppe migrations. We evaluate the influence of these on local populations and assess if and how they change through time, reporting evidence of recurrent hunter-farmer admixture over three millennia, and the co-existence of unadmixed hunter-gatherers as late as 4300 BCE. During the Late Neolithic we report the appearance of steppe ancestry, but on a lesser scale than previously described for other central European regions, with evidence of stronger affinities to hunter-gatherers than to steppe pastoralists. These results help understand the Neolithic palaeogenomics of another central European area, Kuyavia, and highlight the complexity of population interactions during those times.

Corded Ware cultural complexity uncovered using genomic and isotopic analysis from south-eastern Poland

“…central Europe) have however shown a varying degree of Steppe ancestry 1,10 . This component has not been demonstrated among individuals associated with the Globular Amphora culture 11,13,14 . Although our knowledge about the demographic prehistory in continental Europe has increased immensely over the last five years [1][2][3][4][5][6] the regional resolution of the events is insufficient and, thus, our understanding of the social processes is still lacking.…”

“…The HG population living in a neighbourhood of the LBK area upheld their lifeways and for almost a millennium the dispersal of the Neolithic lifeways halted. However, there were evidently contacts between the farming and HG groups seen in admixture patterns 11 . These relations are clearly visible in the Brześć Kujawski group (of the Lengyel complex) found in the region of Kuyavia which for a long time was the northern limit of the (post LBK) farming communities 11,19 .…”

“…The appearance of the Yamnaya (around 3100-3000 BCE) complex in southern Europe roughly coincides with the appearance of the Corded Ware complex (CWC) (around 2900-2800 BCE) further to the North. Earlier archaeogenomic analyses have shown that the CWC individuals, exhibit Steppe ancestry 1,[10][11][12] . Contemporaneous individuals analysed from this region (i.e.…”

“…Individuals from TRB contexts in Poland exhibit admixture with the HG-populations which were mostly linked to the west European HG group (WHG) (e.g. 11 ). Around 3100 BCE the TRB manifestations in Poland decline with the appearance of the Baden culture and the Globular Amphora culture (GAC, c.3400/3100-c.2800 BCE) which replaced the earlier TRB complex in many areas of Poland.…”

Biobank Lodz – population based biobank at the University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland

“…DNA, RNA tests (DNA and RNA isolation from various biological materials), study of genetic variation using classical methods of molecular biology such as: PCR, real-time PCR, Sanger sequencing [18], high-resolution melting of PCR products (HRM) [3-4, 17, 21, 26, 44-45], Taq-Man probes, measurements of selected parameters of the tested material (fluorometric testing of the DNA concentration), separation of nucleic acids using horizontal, vertical, capillary electrophoresis, genomic DNA testing using microarrays (e.g. GWAS) [15-16, 20, 22-23], next generation sequencing (Illumina Platform, Nanopore Sequencing), gene expression testing (RNA-seq, microarray and qPCR) [46][47][48][49][50][51], epigenetic analysis (Chip-Seq, DNA methylation analysis, methylation RNA), microorganism genome analysis (de novo sequencing, variant calling) [44,[52][53][54][55][56][57], eukaryotes whole genome and targeting sequencing, aDNA analysis [58][59], human genome analysis (variant calling, NGS Target Enrichment, whole exome sequencing), amplicon sequencing, metagenomics and metabarcoding, bioinformatics analysis.…”