Ancient DNA for the Archaeologist: The Future of African Research

Campana, Michael G.; Bower, Mim A.; Crabtree, Pam

doi:10.1007/s10437-013-9127-2

Cited by 16 publications

(15 citation statements)

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“…The assumption that ancient DNA does not preserve in African archaeological environments may have also diminished archaeologists' motivations to explore animal genetics. In this issue, Campana et al (2013) note that, although hot, dry environments indeed are not conducive to preservation of aDNA, some subtropical to tropical contexts, especially caves and high-altitude sites, may preserve it. Ancient DNA has been recovered from sub-fossil lemur remains in Madagascar (Campana et al 2013), indicating its preservation potential in a tropical latitude region.…”

Section: The Lag In Africanist Engagement With Archaeogeneticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this issue, Campana et al (2013) note that, although hot, dry environments indeed are not conducive to preservation of aDNA, some subtropical to tropical contexts, especially caves and high-altitude sites, may preserve it. Ancient DNA has been recovered from sub-fossil lemur remains in Madagascar (Campana et al 2013), indicating its preservation potential in a tropical latitude region. Kimura et al (2011Kimura et al ( , 2013) recovered aDNA from a specimen from Uan Muhaggiag, Libya.…”

Section: The Lag In Africanist Engagement With Archaeogeneticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this issue, Campana et al (2013) introduce the terms and type of genetic materials most commonly used in such research, and here, I will simply touch on their general parameters. Research based on modern DNA, especially at the whole genome level, has revealed many specific loci selected for during the domestication process and, thus, elucidates the process (Rubin et al 2010).…”

Section: Bases For Collaborative Research: Modern and Ancient Dnamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Collaborations in Eurasia and the Americas among archaeologists, geneticists of modern breeds, and archaeogeneticists (geneticists specializing in ancient DNA, see Campana et al 2013) have revolutionized the social and economic histories of food production. Among new findings is the recognition that pigs, goats, sheep, horses, and chicken underwent multiple domestications from local populations of wild ancestral species and that this pattern may be the norm rather than the exception.…”

Section: The Dna Revolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It then outlines the research questions and approaches amenable to collaborations between archaeologists and geneticists. It ends by briefly introducing the papers, which outline genetics and archaeogenetics (Campana et al 2013) and which present the current state of knowledge on five species: pig (Amils et al 2013), sheep (Muigai and Hanotte 2013), cattle (Stock and Gifford-Gonzalez 2013), donkey (Kimura et al 2013), and chicken (Mwacharo et al 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Animal Genetics and African Archaeology: Why It Matters

Gifford–Gonzalez

2013

Afr Archaeol Rev

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This article introduces the special issue of African Archaeological Review on the relevance of African livestock genetics to archaeology on the continent. It shows how modern and ancient animal genetic research in Eurasia has substantially revised archaeological scenarios for the origins and spread of food production there. It argues that, in contrast to colleagues in Europe and Asia, Africanist archaeologists have generally been slow to engage in truly collaborative research with archaeogeneticists, with some notable exceptions. It builds a case that animal introductions and domestication are as much social, cultural, and economic processes as they are ecological in nature. Through examples, it outlines some profound selective effects that animal keeping has had on humans themselves. Building on the concepts of taste and embodied practice in Stahl's (2002) discussion of artifacts and differently scaled encounters with non-local commerce, it develops suggestions for archaeologically studying genetically distinctive domestic animals as part of local and long-distance economic systems. Finally, it comments on the issue's review articles and offers suggestions for ways to encourage stronger collaboration between archaeologists and genetic researchers.Résumé Cet article montrent les façons dont les recherches génétiques animales modernes et anciennes en Eurasie ont révisé substantiellement les scénarios archéologiques des origins et de la propagation sur le continent. Il affirme que, par contraste avec ces colleagues en Europe et en Asie, les archéologues africanists ont généralement été lents à s'engager dans la recherche collaborative avec les archéogénéticiens, avec quelques exceptions notables. Il fait le cas que les introductions et les domestications sont autant des processus sociaux, culturels, et économiques qu'ils sont écologiques par nature. À travers des exemples, il résume quelques effets profonds selectifs que le gardiennage d'animaux a eu sur les être humains eux-mêmes. En prennant appui sur les concepts du goût et de la pratique Afr Archaeol Rev (2013) 30:1-20 DOI 10.1007 D. Gifford-Gonzalez (*) Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA e-mail: dianegg@ucsc.edu incarnés dans la discussion de Stahl (2002) des objets et des rencontres des échelles différentes avec le commerce non local, il avance des propositions pour l'étude des animaux domestiques génétiquement distincts comme un partie des systèmes economiques de longue-distance. Enfin, il commente les articles du numéro et offre les suggéstions d'encourager la collaboration plus étroite entre les archéologues et les chercheurs génétiques.

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Section: The Lag In Africanist Engagement With Archaeogeneticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Lag In Africanist Engagement With Archaeogeneticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Bases For Collaborative Research: Modern and Ancient Dnamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: The Dna Revolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Animal Genetics and African Archaeology: Why It Matters

Gifford–Gonzalez

2013

Afr Archaeol Rev

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Ancient DNA

Sawchuk

2021

The Encyclopedia of Ancient History

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As the continent where humans evolved and thus exhibit the greatest genetic diversity, Africa is one of the most attractive places to conduct ancient DNA (aDNA) research. Yet the “aDNA revolution” only recently reached the continent, thanks in part to methodological breakthroughs that make it possible to extract aDNA from poorly preserved materials from hot and/or humid climates. Since the first fully sequenced ancient African human genome was published in 2015, dozens of additional genomes from the continent have illuminated population movements, economic and social transitions, patterns of adaptation, and the timing of our species' evolution. However, sequenced individuals come from archaeological contexts widely separated in space and time and represent only a tiny fraction of ancient human genetic diversity. Many questions and entire regions/time periods have yet to be explored using aDNA. This is also the case for non‐human African aDNA studies, which have been slower to develop in part because of poor preservation. This entry describes the science of aDNA, discusses how the field has revolutionized in the past decade, and explores the history of aDNA research in Africa starting with mummy studies in the 1980s. It concludes with a discussion of the ethical challenges facing African aDNA research, some of which are specific to the continent while others apply to postcolonial contexts more broadly. While there is major work ahead to ensure aDNA studies in Africa and beyond are conducted ethically and equitably, the field is poised to shift knowledge on the African past in the coming years.

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The Value in Studying Large Faunal Collections Using Traditional Zooarchaeological Methods: A Case Study from Anglo-Saxon England

Crabtree

2017

Zooarchaeology in Practice

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Ancient DNA for the Archaeologist: The Future of African Research

Cited by 16 publications

References 82 publications

Animal Genetics and African Archaeology: Why It Matters

Animal Genetics and African Archaeology: Why It Matters

Ancient DNA

The Value in Studying Large Faunal Collections Using Traditional Zooarchaeological Methods: A Case Study from Anglo-Saxon England

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