Ancestry and demography and descendants of Iron Age nomads of the Eurasian Steppe

Unterländer, Martina; Palstra, Friso; Lazaridis, Iosif; Пилипенко, А. С.; Hofmanová, Zuzana; Groß, Melanie; Sell, Christian; Blöcher, Jens; Kirsanow, Karola; Rohland, Nadin; Rieger, Benjamin; Kaiser, Elke; Schier, Wolfram; Pozdniakov, Dimitri; Khokhlov, Aleksandr; Georges, Myriam; Wilde, Sandra; Powell, Adam; Heyer, Évelyne; Currat, Mathias; Reich, David; Samashev, Z.; Parzinger, Hermann; Молодин, В.И.; Bürger, Joachim

doi:10.1038/ncomms14615

Cited by 108 publications

(135 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…We estimated the variant to be 1,456 generations old, approximately 29,000 to 44,000 years ( Figure 3B; https://human.genome.dating/snp/rs3827760), again with strong concordance between TGP (1,513 generations) and SGDP (1,346 generations). Our estimate is consistent with previous estimates and limited evidence from ancient DNA studies [7,40]. Our results further show that most individuals carrying the allele share a common ancestor close to the time the allele arose through mutation.…”

Section: Age Of Selected Variantssupporting

confidence: 92%

Dating genomic variants and shared ancestry in population-scale sequencing data

Albers

McVean

2018

Preprint

118

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The origin and fate of new mutations within species is the fundamental process underlying evolution. However, while much attention has been focused on characterizing the presence, frequency, and phenotypic impact of genetic variation, the evolutionary histories of most variants are largely unexplored. We have developed a nonparametric approach for estimating the date of origin of genetic variants in large-scale sequencing data sets. The accuracy and robustness of the approach is demonstrated through simulation. Using data from two publicly available human genomic diversity resources, we estimated the age of more than 45 million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human genome and release the Atlas of Variant Age as a public online database. We characterize the relationship between variant age and frequency in different geographical regions, and demonstrate the value of age information in interpreting variants of functional and selective importance. Finally, we use allele age estimates to power a rapid approach for inferring the ancestry shared between individual genomes, to quantify genealogical relationships at different points in the past, as well as describe and explore the evolutionary history of modern human populations.

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Section: Age Of Selected Variantssupporting

confidence: 92%

Dating genomic variants and shared ancestry in population-scale sequencing data

Albers

McVean

2018

Preprint

118

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“…The Yenisei region was outside the main routes of Eurasian agricultural exchange up to the time of the Late Bronze Age Karasuk Culture [24][25][26]. One of the remarkable features of the Ket mtDNA pool is a lineage of hapogroup N2a distinguished by a set of mutations that we newly document here (m.1633T>C, m.11722C>T, and m.12192G>A) ( Fig.…”

Section: Haplogroup N2amentioning

confidence: 67%

“…Overall, 218 newly reported mt genomes are listed in Table S1 along with ethnicity, sample location, and accession codes in GenBank. In the course of this study, 70 ancient mtDNA sequences were published and we used them to provide powerful new information about subhaplogroup affiliation ( Supplementary Table 2) [24,25,30,33,41,43]. To uncover ancient mtDNA lineages, especially those related to the Altai-Sayan area, we compared modern mitogenomic data with their ancient counterparts sampled from skeletons recovered from the Euro-Siberian region that extends from the Central Europe and Scandinavia to Lake Baikal.…”

Section: Mitochondrial Data Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Mitochondrial Genome Diversity in the Central Siberian Plateau with Particular Reference to Prehistory of Northernmost Eurasia

Dryomov

Nazhmidenova

Starikovskaya

et al. 2019

Preprint

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The Central Siberian Plateau was last geographic area in Eurasia to become habitable by modern humans after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Through comprehensive mitochondrial DNA genomes retained in indigenous Siberian populations, the Ket, Tofalar, and Todzhi -we explored genetic links between the Yenisei-Sayan region and Northeast Eurasia over the last 10,000 years. Accordingly, we generated 218 new complete mtDNA sequences and placed them into compound phylogenies along with 7 newly obtained and 70 published ancient mt genomes. Our findings reflect the origins and expansion history of mtDNA lineages that evolved in South-Central Siberia, as well as multiple phases of connections between this region and distant parts of Eurasia.

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“…The nine skeletons were collected from typical Khazar burial kurgans in the southern Russian steppes (see Supplement for details). Genotypes of ancient Eurasians (1st millennium BC-10th millennium BC) were obtained from https://reich.hms.harvard.edu/datasets; these datasets correspond to the following recent publications: [26,[39][40][41][42][43][44][45][46][47][48][49][50]. The datasets were stratified into 6 cohorts by the estimated age of the samples: 0-1000 BC, 1000-2000 BC, 2000-3000 BC, 3000-4000 BC, 4000-5000 BC, and above 5000 BC.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diverse genetic origins of medieval steppe nomad conquerors

Qiu

Zarubin

et al. 2019

Preprint

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Over millennia, steppe nomadic tribes raided and sometimes overran settled Eurasian civilizations. Most polities formed by steppe nomads were ephemeral, making it difficult to ascertain their genetic roots or what present-day populations, if any, have descended from them. Exceptionally, the Khazar Khaganate controlled the trade artery between the Black and Caspian Seas in VIII-IX centuries, acting as one of the major conduits between East and West. However, the genetic identity of the ruling elite within the polyglot and polyethnic Khaganate has been a much-debated mystery; a controversial hypothesis posits that post-conversion to Judaism the Khazars gave rise to modern Ashkenazim. We analyzed whole-genome sequences of eight men and one woman buried within the distinctive kurgans of the Khazar upper (warrior) class. After comparing them with reference panels of present-day Eurasian and Iron Age populations, we found that the Khazar political organization relied on a polyethnic elite. It was predominantly descended from Central Asian tribes but incorporated genetic admixture from populations conquered by Khazars. Thus, the Khazar ruling class was likely relatively small and able to maintain a genetic identity distinct from their subjugated populations over the course of centuries. Yet, men of mixed ancestry could also rise into the warrior class, possibly providing troop numbers necessary to maintain control of their large territory. However, when the Khaganate collapsed it left few persistent genetic traces in Europe. Our data confirm the Turkic roots of the Khazars, but also highlight their ethnic diversity and some integration of conquered populations.

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Ancestry and demography and descendants of Iron Age nomads of the Eurasian Steppe

Cited by 108 publications

References 62 publications

Dating genomic variants and shared ancestry in population-scale sequencing data

Dating genomic variants and shared ancestry in population-scale sequencing data

Mitochondrial Genome Diversity in the Central Siberian Plateau with Particular Reference to Prehistory of Northernmost Eurasia

Diverse genetic origins of medieval steppe nomad conquerors

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