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Abstract
Trade and colonization caused an unprecedented increase in Mediterranean human mobility in the first millennium BCE. Often seen as a dividing force, warfare is in fact another catalyst of culture contact. We provide insight into the demographic dynamics of ancient warfare by reporting genome-wide data from fifth-century soldiers who fought for the army of the Greek Sicilian colony of Himera, along with representatives of the civilian population, nearby indigenous settlements, and 96 present-day individuals from Italy and Greece. Unlike the rest of the sample, many soldiers had ancestral origins in northern Europe, the Steppe, and the Caucasus. Integrating genetic, archaeological, isotopic, and historical data, these results illustrate the significant role mercenaries played in ancient Greek armies and highlight how participation in war contributed to continental-scale human mobility in the Classical world.
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Assessing temporal and geographic contacts across the Adriatic Sea through the analysis of genome-wide data from Southern Italy. Genomics 2022; 114:110405. [PMID: 35709925 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2022.110405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Southern Italy was characterised by a complex prehistory that started with different Palaeolithic cultures, later followed by the Neolithization and the demic dispersal from the Pontic-Caspian Steppe during the Bronze Age. Archaeological and historical evidences point to a link between Southern Italians and the Balkans still present in modern times. To shed light on these dynamics, we analysed around 700 South Mediterranean genomes combined with informative ancient DNAs. Our findings revealed high affinities of South-Eastern Italians with modern Eastern Peloponnesians, and a closer affinity of ancient Greek genomes with those from specific regions of South Italy than modern Greek genomes. The higher similarity could be associated with a Bronze Age component ultimately originating from the Caucasus with high Iranian and Anatolian Neolithic ancestries. Furthermore, extremely differentiated allele frequencies among Northern and Southern Italy revealed putatively adapted SNPs in genes involved in alcohol metabolism, nevi features and immunological traits.
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Archaeogenetics and Landscape Dynamics in Sicily during the Holocene: A Review. SUSTAINABILITY 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/su13179469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The Mediterranean islands and their population history are of considerable importance to the interpretation of the population history of Europe as a whole. In this context, Sicily, because of its geographic position, represents a bridge between Africa, the Near East, and Europe that led to the stratification of settlements and admixture events. The genetic analysis of extant and ancient human samples has tried to reconstruct the population dynamics associated with the cultural and demographic changes that took place during the prehistory and history of Sicily. In turn, genetic, demographic and cultural changes need to be understood in the context of the environmental changes that took place over the Holocene. Based on this framework, this paper aims to discuss the cultural and demographic dimension of the island by reviewing archaeogenetic studies, and lastly, we discuss the ecological constraints related to human peopling in times of change in landscapes that occurred on the island in various periods. Finally, possible directions for future archaeogenetic studies of Sicily are discussed. Despite its long human history, Sicily is still one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. The lessons we learn from the past use of landscape provide models for sustainable future management of the Mediterranean’s landscapes.
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Moutsouri I, Keravnou A, Manoli P, Bertoncini S, Michailidou K, Christofi V, Xenophontos S, Cariolou MA, Bashiardes E. Comparative Y-chromosome analysis among Cypriots in the context of historical events and migrations. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0255140. [PMID: 34424929 PMCID: PMC8382168 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Y-chromosome analysis provides valuable information regarding the migration patterns of male ancestors, ranging from the Paleolithic age to the modern humans. STR and SNP genotyping analysis provides data regarding the genetic and geographical ancestry of the populations studied. This study focused on the analysis of the Y-chromosome in Maronite Cypriots and Armenian Cypriots, who came to the island as a result of different historical events. The aim was to provide information on the paternal genetic ancestry of Maronites and Armenians of Cyprus and investigate any affinity with the Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots of the island. Since there is limited information in the current literature, we proceeded and used 23 Y-chromosome STRs and 28 Y-chromosome SNPs to genotype 57 Maronite Cypriots and 56 Armenian Cypriots, which were then compared to data from 344 Greek Cypriots and 380 Turkish Cypriots. All samples were assigned to eight major Y-haplogroups but the most frequent haplogroup among all Cypriots is haplogroup J in the major subclade J2a-L559. The calculated pairwise genetic distances between the populations show that Armenian Cypriots are genetically closer to Greek and Turkish Cypriots compared to Maronite Cypriots. Median Joining Network analysis in 17 Y-STR haplotypes of all Cypriots assigned to J2a-L559, revealed that Cypriots share a common paternal ancestor, prior to the migration of the Armenians and Maronites to Cyprus, estimated in the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Moutsouri
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Anna Keravnou
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Panayiotis Manoli
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | | | - Kyriaki Michailidou
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Biostatistics Unit, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Vasilis Christofi
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Stavroulla Xenophontos
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Marios A. Cariolou
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Evy Bashiardes
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
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Phylogeographic review of Y chromosome haplogroups in Europe. Int J Legal Med 2021; 135:1675-1684. [PMID: 34216266 DOI: 10.1007/s00414-021-02644-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/16/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The Y chromosome has been widely explored for the study of human migrations. Due to its paternal inheritance, the Y chromosome polymorphisms are helpful tools for understanding the geographical distribution of populations all over the world and for inferring their origin, which is really useful in forensics. The remarkable historical context of Europe, with numerous migrations and invasions, has turned this continent into a melting pot. For this reason, it is interesting to study the Y chromosome variability and how it has contributed to improving our knowledge of the distribution and development of European male genetic pool as it is today. The analysis of Y lineages in Europe shows the predominance of four haplogroups, R1b-M269, I1-M253, I2-M438 and R1a-M420. However, other haplogroups have been identified which, although less frequent, provide significant evidence about the paternal origin of the populations. In addition, the study of the Y chromosome in Europe is a valuable tool for revealing the genetic trace of the different European colonizations, mainly in several American countries, where the European ancestry is mostly detected by the presence of the R1b-M269 haplogroup. Therefore, the objective of this review is to compile the studies of the Y chromosome haplogroups in current European populations, in order to provide an outline of these haplogroups which facilitate their use in forensic studies.
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Lall GM, Larmuseau MHD, Wetton JH, Batini C, Hallast P, Huszar TI, Zadik D, Aase S, Baker T, Balaresque P, Bodmer W, Børglum AD, de Knijff P, Dunn H, Harding SE, Løvvik H, Dupuy BM, Pamjav H, Tillmar AO, Tomaszewski M, Tyler-Smith C, Verdugo MP, Winney B, Vohra P, Story J, King TE, Jobling MA. Subdividing Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 reveals Norse Viking dispersal lineages in Britain. Eur J Hum Genet 2020; 29:512-523. [PMID: 33139852 PMCID: PMC7940619 DOI: 10.1038/s41431-020-00747-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2019] [Revised: 09/08/2020] [Accepted: 10/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The influence of Viking-Age migrants to the British Isles is obvious in archaeological and place-names evidence, but their demographic impact has been unclear. Autosomal genetic analyses support Norse Viking contributions to parts of Britain, but show no signal corresponding to the Danelaw, the region under Scandinavian administrative control from the ninth to eleventh centuries. Y-chromosome haplogroup R1a1 has been considered as a possible marker for Viking migrations because of its high frequency in peninsular Scandinavia (Norway and Sweden). Here we select ten Y-SNPs to discriminate informatively among hg R1a1 sub-haplogroups in Europe, analyse these in 619 hg R1a1 Y chromosomes including 163 from the British Isles, and also type 23 short-tandem repeats (Y-STRs) to assess internal diversity. We find three specifically Western-European sub-haplogroups, two of which predominate in Norway and Sweden, and are also found in Britain; star-like features in the STR networks of these lineages indicate histories of expansion. We ask whether geographical distributions of hg R1a1 overall, and of the two sub-lineages in particular, correlate with regions of Scandinavian influence within Britain. Neither shows any frequency difference between regions that have higher (≥10%) or lower autosomal contributions from Norway and Sweden, but both are significantly overrepresented in the region corresponding to the Danelaw. These differences between autosomal and Y-chromosomal histories suggest either male-specific contribution, or the influence of patrilocality. Comparison of modern DNA with recently available ancient DNA data supports the interpretation that two sub-lineages of hg R1a1 spread with the Vikings from peninsular Scandinavia.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Maarten H D Larmuseau
- Department of Human Genetics, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Histories vzw, Zoutwerf 5, 2800, Mechelen, Belgium
| | - Jon H Wetton
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,School of History, Politics and International Relations, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Chiara Batini
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,Department of Health Sciences, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK
| | - Pille Hallast
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,Wellcome Sanger Institute, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK.,Institute of Biomedicine and Translational Medicine, University of Tartu, Tartu, 50411, Estonia
| | - Tunde I Huszar
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Daniel Zadik
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,Centre for Genetics and Genomics, University of Nottingham, Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, UK
| | | | - Tina Baker
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,MRC Human Genetics Unit, MRC IGMM, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Patricia Balaresque
- UMR5288, Laboratoire d'Anthropologie Moléculaire et Imagerie de Synthèse, Université Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Walter Bodmer
- Department of Oncology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Anders D Børglum
- Department of Biomedicine & Centre for Integrative Sequencing, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Peter de Knijff
- Department of Human Genetics, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Hayley Dunn
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,School of Archaeology and Ancient History, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Stephen E Harding
- National Centre for Macromolecular Hydrodynamics, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington Campus, Loughborough, UK.,Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Berit Myhre Dupuy
- Division of Forensic Sciences, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway
| | - Horolma Pamjav
- Hungarian Institute for Forensic Sciences, Institute of Forensic Genetics, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Andreas O Tillmar
- Department of Forensic Genetics and Forensic Toxicology, National Board of Forensic Medicine, Linköping, Sweden
| | - Maciej Tomaszewski
- Division of Cardiovascular Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.,Division of Medicine and Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | | | - Marta Pereira Verdugo
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,Smurfit Institute of Genetics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland
| | - Bruce Winney
- Department of Oncology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Pragya Vohra
- School of History, Politics and International Relations, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.,Department of History, University of York, Heslington, York, UK
| | - Joanna Story
- School of History, Politics and International Relations, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Turi E King
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
| | - Mark A Jobling
- Department of Genetics & Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK.
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Rathmann H, Kyle B, Nikita E, Harvati K, Saltini Semerari G. Population history of southern Italy during Greek colonization inferred from dental remains. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2019; 170:519-534. [DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23937] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2019] [Revised: 05/03/2019] [Accepted: 09/05/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hannes Rathmann
- DFG Center for Advanced Studies “Words, Bones, Genes, Tools”Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen Tübingen Germany
| | - Britney Kyle
- Department of AnthropologyUniversity of Northern Colorado Greeley Colorado
| | - Efthymia Nikita
- Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture Research CenterThe Cyprus Institute Nicosia Cyprus
| | - Katerina Harvati
- DFG Center for Advanced Studies “Words, Bones, Genes, Tools”Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen Tübingen Germany
- Paleoanthropology, Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and PalaeoenvironmentEberhard Karls University of Tübingen Tübingen Germany
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8
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Yardumian A, Schurr TG. The Geography of Jewish Ethnogenesis. JOURNAL OF ANTHROPOLOGICAL RESEARCH 2019. [DOI: 10.1086/702709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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9
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Larmuseau MHD, Ottoni C. Mediterranean Y-chromosome 2.0-why the Y in the Mediterranean is still relevant in the postgenomic era. Ann Hum Biol 2018; 45:20-33. [PMID: 29382278 DOI: 10.1080/03014460.2017.1402956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Due to its unique paternal inheritance, the Y-chromosome has been a highly popular marker among population geneticists for over two decades. Recently, the advent of cost-effective genome-wide methods has unlocked information-rich autosomal genomic data, paving the way to the postgenomic era. This seems to have announced the decreasing popularity of investigating Y-chromosome variation, which provides only the paternal perspective of human ancestries and is strongly influenced by genetic drift and social behaviour. OBJECTIVE For this special issue on population genetics of the Mediterranean, the aim was to demonstrate that the Y-chromosome still provides important insights in the postgenomic era and in a time when ancient genomes are becoming exponentially available. METHODS A systematic literature search on Y-chromosomal studies in the Mediterranean was performed. RESULTS Several applications of Y-chromosomal analysis with future opportunities are formulated and illustrated with studies on Mediterranean populations. CONCLUSIONS There will be no reduced interest in Y-chromosomal studies going from reconstruction of male-specific demographic events to ancient DNA applications, surname history and population-wide estimations of extra-pair paternity rates. Moreover, more initiatives are required to collect population genetic data of Y-chromosomal markers for forensic research, and to include Y-chromosomal data in GWAS investigations and studies on male infertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maarten H D Larmuseau
- a KU Leuven, Forensic Biomedical Sciences , Department of Imaging & Pathology , Leuven , Belgium.,b KU Leuven, Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution , Department of Biology , Leuven , Belgium
| | - Claudio Ottoni
- c Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences , University of Oslo , Oslo , Norway
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10
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De Angelis F, Scorrano G, Martínez-Labarga C, Scano G, Macciardi F, Rickards O. Mitochondrial variability in the Mediterranean area: a complex stage for human migrations. Ann Hum Biol 2018; 45:5-19. [PMID: 29382277 DOI: 10.1080/03014460.2017.1416172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT The Mediterranean area has always played a significant role in human dispersal due to the large number of migratory events contributing to shape the cultural features and the genetic pool of its populations. OBJECTIVE This paper aims to review and diachronically describe the mitogenome variability in the Mediterranean population and the main demic diffusions that occurred in this area over time. METHODS Frequency distributions of the leading mitochondrial haplogroups have been geographically and chronologically evaluated. The variability of U5b and K lineages has been focussed to broaden the knowledge of their genetic histories. RESULTS The mitochondrial genetic makeup of Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers is poorly defined within the extant Mediterranean populations, since only a few traces of their genetic contribution are still detectable. The Neolithic lineages are more represented, suggesting that the Neolithic revolution had a marked effect on the peopling of the Mediterranean area. The largest effect, however, was provided by historical migrations. CONCLUSION Although the mitogenome variability has been widely used to try and clarify the evolution of the Mediterranean genetic makeup throughout almost 50 000 years, it is necessary to collect whole genome data on both extinct and extant populations from this area to fully reconstruct and interpret the impact of multiple migratory waves and their cultural and genetic consequences on the structure of the Mediterranean populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavio De Angelis
- a Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies , University of Rome "Tor Vergata" , Rome , Italy
| | - Gabriele Scorrano
- a Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies , University of Rome "Tor Vergata" , Rome , Italy
| | - Cristina Martínez-Labarga
- a Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies , University of Rome "Tor Vergata" , Rome , Italy
| | - Giuseppina Scano
- a Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies , University of Rome "Tor Vergata" , Rome , Italy
| | - Fabio Macciardi
- b Laboratory of Molecular Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior , University of California , Irvine , CA , USA
| | - Olga Rickards
- a Centre of Molecular Anthropology for Ancient DNA Studies , University of Rome "Tor Vergata" , Rome , Italy
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Boattini A, Sarno S, Fiorani O, Lisa A, Luiselli D, Pettener D. Ripples on the surface. Surnames and genes in Sicily and Southern Italy. Ann Hum Biol 2018; 45:57-65. [PMID: 29183201 DOI: 10.1080/03014460.2017.1411525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Southern Italy and Sicily played a key role in the peopling history of the Mediterranean. While genetic research showed the remarkable homogeneity of these regions, surname-based studies instead suggested low population mobility, hence potential structuring. AIM In order to better understand these different patterns, this study (1) thoroughly analysed the surname structure of Sicily and Southern Italy and (2) tested its relationships with a wide set of molecular markers. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Surname data were collected from 1213 municipalities and compared to uniparental and autosomal genetic markers typed in ∼300 individuals from 8-10 populations. Surname analyses were performed using different multivariate methods, while comparisons with genetic data relied on correlation tests. RESULTS Surnames were clearly structured according to regional geographic patterns, which likely emerged because of recent isolation-by-distance-like population dynamics. In general, genetic markers, hinting at a pervasive homogeneity, did not correlate with surname distribution. However, long autosomal haplotypes (>5 cM) that compared to genotypic (SNPs) data identify more "recent" relatedness, showing a clear association with surname patterns. CONCLUSION The apparent contradiction between surname structure and genetic homogeneity was resolved by figuring surnames as recent "ripples" deposited on a vast and ancient homogeneous genetic "surface".
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessio Boattini
- a Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences , University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
| | - Stefania Sarno
- a Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences , University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
| | - Ornella Fiorani
- b Institute of Molecular Genetics (IGM) , Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) , Pavia , Italy
| | - Antonella Lisa
- b Institute of Molecular Genetics (IGM) , Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR) , Pavia , Italy
| | - Donata Luiselli
- a Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences , University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
| | - Davide Pettener
- a Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences , University of Bologna , Bologna , Italy
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A finely resolved phylogeny of Y chromosome Hg J illuminates the processes of Phoenician and Greek colonizations in the Mediterranean. Sci Rep 2018; 8:7465. [PMID: 29748665 PMCID: PMC5945646 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-25912-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 04/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
In order to improve the phylogeography of the male-specific genetic traces of Greek and Phoenician colonizations on the Northern coasts of the Mediterranean, we performed a geographically structured sampling of seven subclades of haplogroup J in Turkey, Greece and Italy. We resequenced 4.4 Mb of Y-chromosome in 58 subjects, obtaining 1079 high quality variants. We did not find a preferential coalescence of Turkish samples to ancestral nodes, contradicting the simplistic idea of a dispersal and radiation of Hg J as a whole from the Middle East. Upon calibration with an ancient Hg J chromosome, we confirmed that signs of Holocenic Hg J radiations are subtle and date mainly to the Bronze Age. We pinpointed seven variants which could potentially unveil star clusters of sequences, indicative of local expansions. By directly genotyping these variants in Hg J carriers and complementing with published resequenced chromosomes (893 subjects), we provide strong temporal and distributional evidence for markers of the Greek settlement of Magna Graecia (J2a-L397) and Phoenician migrations (rs760148062). Our work generated a minimal but robust list of evolutionarily stable markers to elucidate the demographic dynamics and spatial domains of male-mediated movements across and around the Mediterranean, in the last 6,000 years.
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Larmuseau MHD, Calafell F, Princen SA, Decorte R, Soen V. The black legend on the Spanish presence in the low countries: Verifying shared beliefs on genetic ancestry. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2018; 166:219-227. [PMID: 29327450 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.23409] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2017] [Revised: 11/28/2017] [Accepted: 01/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES War atrocities committed by the Spanish army in the Low Countries during the 16th century are so ingrained in the collective memory of Belgian and Dutch societies that they generally assume a signature of this history to be present in their genetic ancestry. Historians claim this assumption is a consequence of the so-called "Black Legend" and negative propaganda portraying and remembering Spanish soldiers as extreme sexual aggressors. The impact of the presence of Spaniards during the Dutch Revolt on the genetic variation in the Low Countries has been verified in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS A recent population genetic analysis of Iberian-associated Y-chromosomal variation among Europe is enlarged with representative samples of Dutch (N = 250) and Flemish (N = 1,087) males. Frequencies of these variants are also compared between donors whose oldest reported paternal ancestors lived in-nowadays Flemish-cities affected by so-called Spanish Furies (N = 116) versus other patrilineages in current Flemish territory (N = 971). RESULTS The frequencies of Y-chromosomal markers Z195 and SRY2627 decline steeply going north from Spain and the data for the Flemish and Dutch populations fits within this pattern. No trend of higher frequencies of these variants has been found within the well-ascertained samples associated with Spanish Fury cities. DISCUSSION Although sexual aggression did occur in the 16th century, these activities did not leave a traceable "Spanish" genetic signature in the autochthonous genome of the Low Countries. Our results support the view that the 'Black Legend' and historical propaganda on sexual aggression have nurtured today's incorrect assumptions regarding genetic ancestry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maarten H D Larmuseau
- Department of Forensic Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Forensic Genetics and Molecular Archaeology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Department of Biology, Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Francesc Calafell
- Departament de Ciències Experimentals i de la Salut, Institut de Biologia Evolutiva (CSIC-UPF), Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Sarah A Princen
- Department of Biology, Laboratory of Socioecology and Social Evolution, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ronny Decorte
- Department of Forensic Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Forensic Genetics and Molecular Archaeology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Violet Soen
- Early Modern History (15th-18th Centuries), Faculty of Arts, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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Heraclides A, Bashiardes E, Fernández-Domínguez E, Bertoncini S, Chimonas M, Christofi V, King J, Budowle B, Manoli P, Cariolou MA. Y-chromosomal analysis of Greek Cypriots reveals a primarily common pre-Ottoman paternal ancestry with Turkish Cypriots. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0179474. [PMID: 28622394 PMCID: PMC5473566 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179474] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2016] [Accepted: 05/31/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Genetics can provide invaluable information on the ancestry of the current inhabitants of Cyprus. A Y-chromosome analysis was performed to (i) determine paternal ancestry among the Greek Cypriot (GCy) community in the context of the Central and Eastern Mediterranean and the Near East; and (ii) identify genetic similarities and differences between Greek Cypriots (GCy) and Turkish Cypriots (TCy). Our haplotype-based analysis has revealed that GCy and TCy patrilineages derive primarily from a single gene pool and show very close genetic affinity (low genetic differentiation) to Calabrian Italian and Lebanese patrilineages. In terms of more recent (past millennium) ancestry, as indicated by Y-haplotype sharing, GCy and TCy share much more haplotypes between them than with any surrounding population (7-8% of total haplotypes shared), while TCy also share around 3% of haplotypes with mainland Turks, and to a lesser extent with North Africans. In terms of Y-haplogroup frequencies, again GCy and TCy show very similar distributions, with the predominant haplogroups in both being J2a-M410, E-M78, and G2-P287. Overall, GCy also have a similar Y-haplogroup distribution to non-Turkic Anatolian and Southwest Caucasian populations, as well as Cretan Greeks. TCy show a slight shift towards Turkish populations, due to the presence of Eastern Eurasian (some of which of possible Ottoman origin) Y-haplogroups. Overall, the Y-chromosome analysis performed, using both Y-STR haplotype and binary Y-haplogroup data puts Cypriot in the middle of a genetic continuum stretching from the Levant to Southeast Europe and reveals that despite some differences in haplotype sharing and haplogroup structure, Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots share primarily a common pre-Ottoman paternal ancestry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandros Heraclides
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Department of Primary Care and Population Health, University of Nicosia Medical School, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Evy Bashiardes
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | | | | | - Marios Chimonas
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Vasilis Christofi
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Jonathan King
- Center for Human Identification, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas, United States of America
| | - Bruce Budowle
- Center for Human Identification, University of North Texas Health Science Center, Fort Worth, Texas, United States of America
- Center of Excellence in Genomic Medicine Research, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
| | - Panayiotis Manoli
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Marios A. Cariolou
- Department of Cardiovascular Genetics and The Laboratory of Forensic Genetics, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
- Cyprus School of Molecular Medicine, The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, Nicosia, Cyprus
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15
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Ancient and recent admixture layers in Sicily and Southern Italy trace multiple migration routes along the Mediterranean. Sci Rep 2017; 7:1984. [PMID: 28512355 PMCID: PMC5434004 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-01802-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2016] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The Mediterranean shores stretching between Sicily, Southern Italy and the Southern Balkans witnessed a long series of migration processes and cultural exchanges. Accordingly, present-day population diversity is composed by multiple genetic layers, which make the deciphering of different ancestral and historical contributes particularly challenging. We address this issue by genotyping 511 samples from 23 populations of Sicily, Southern Italy, Greece and Albania with the Illumina GenoChip Array, also including new samples from Albanian- and Greek-speaking ethno-linguistic minorities of Southern Italy. Our results reveal a shared Mediterranean genetic continuity, extending from Sicily to Cyprus, where Southern Italian populations appear genetically closer to Greek-speaking islands than to continental Greece. Besides a predominant Neolithic background, we identify traces of Post-Neolithic Levantine- and Caucasus-related ancestries, compatible with maritime Bronze-Age migrations. We argue that these results may have important implications in the cultural history of Europe, such as in the diffusion of some Indo-European languages. Instead, recent historical expansions from North-Eastern Europe account for the observed differentiation of present-day continental Southern Balkan groups. Patterns of IBD-sharing directly reconnect Albanian-speaking Arbereshe with a recent Balkan-source origin, while Greek-speaking communities of Southern Italy cluster with their Italian-speaking neighbours suggesting a long-term history of presence in Southern Italy.
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16
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Messina F, Finocchio A, Akar N, Loutradis A, Michalodimitrakis EI, Brdicka R, Jodice C, Novelletto A. Spatially Explicit Models to Investigate Geographic Patterns in the Distribution of Forensic STRs: Application to the North-Eastern Mediterranean. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0167065. [PMID: 27898725 PMCID: PMC5127579 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0167065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2016] [Accepted: 11/08/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Human forensic STRs used for individual identification have been reported to have little power for inter-population analyses. Several methods have been developed which incorporate information on the spatial distribution of individuals to arrive at a description of the arrangement of diversity. We genotyped at 16 forensic STRs a large population sample obtained from many locations in Italy, Greece and Turkey, i.e. three countries crucial to the understanding of discontinuities at the European/Asian junction and the genetic legacy of ancient migrations, but seldom represented together in previous studies. Using spatial PCA on the full dataset, we detected patterns of population affinities in the area. Additionally, we devised objective criteria to reduce the overall complexity into reduced datasets. Independent spatially explicit methods applied to these latter datasets converged in showing that the extraction of information on long- to medium-range geographical trends and structuring from the overall diversity is possible. All analyses returned the picture of a background clinal variation, with regional discontinuities captured by each of the reduced datasets. Several aspects of our results are confirmed on external STR datasets and replicate those of genome-wide SNP typings. High levels of gene flow were inferred within the main continental areas by coalescent simulations. These results are promising from a microevolutionary perspective, in view of the fast pace at which forensic data are being accumulated for many locales. It is foreseeable that this will allow the exploitation of an invaluable genotypic resource, assembled for other (forensic) purposes, to clarify important aspects in the formation of local gene pools.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Nejat Akar
- Pediatrics Department, TOBB-Economy and Technology University Hospital, Ankara, Turkey
| | | | | | - Radim Brdicka
- Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion, Praha, Czech Republic
| | - Carla Jodice
- Department of Biology, University "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
| | - Andrea Novelletto
- Department of Biology, University "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
- * E-mail:
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17
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Complex interplay between neutral and adaptive evolution shaped differential genomic background and disease susceptibility along the Italian peninsula. Sci Rep 2016; 6:32513. [PMID: 27582244 PMCID: PMC5007512 DOI: 10.1038/srep32513] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2016] [Accepted: 08/08/2016] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
The Italian peninsula has long represented a natural hub for human migrations across
the Mediterranean area, being involved in several prehistoric and historical
population movements. Coupled with a patchy environmental landscape entailing
different ecological/cultural selective pressures, this might have produced peculiar
patterns of population structure and local adaptations responsible for heterogeneous
genomic background of present-day Italians. To disentangle this complex scenario,
genome-wide data from 780 Italian individuals were generated and set into the
context of European/Mediterranean genomic diversity by comparison with genotypes
from 50 populations. To maximize possibility of pinpointing functional genomic
regions that have played adaptive roles during Italian natural history, our survey
included also ~250,000 exomic markers and ~20,000
coding/regulatory variants with well-established clinical relevance. This enabled
fine-grained dissection of Italian population structure through the identification
of clusters of genetically homogeneous provinces and of genomic regions underlying
their local adaptations. Description of such patterns disclosed crucial implications
for understanding differential susceptibility to some inflammatory/autoimmune
disorders, coronary artery disease and type 2 diabetes of diverse Italian
subpopulations, suggesting the evolutionary causes that made some of them
particularly exposed to the metabolic and immune challenges imposed by dietary and
lifestyle shifts that involved western societies in the last centuries.
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18
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Sarno S, Tofanelli S, De Fanti S, Quagliariello A, Bortolini E, Ferri G, Anagnostou P, Brisighelli F, Capelli C, Tagarelli G, Sineo L, Luiselli D, Boattini A, Pettener D. Shared language, diverging genetic histories: high-resolution analysis of Y-chromosome variability in Calabrian and Sicilian Arbereshe. Eur J Hum Genet 2015; 24:600-6. [PMID: 26130483 PMCID: PMC4929864 DOI: 10.1038/ejhg.2015.138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2014] [Revised: 04/02/2015] [Accepted: 04/14/2015] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The relationship between genetic and linguistic diversification in human populations has been often explored to interpret some specific issues in human history. The Albanian-speaking minorities of Sicily and Southern Italy (Arbereshe) constitute an important portion of the ethnolinguistic variability of Italy. Their linguistic isolation from neighboring Italian populations and their documented migration history, make such minorities particularly effective for investigating the interplay between cultural, geographic and historical factors. Nevertheless, the extent of Arbereshe genetic relationships with the Balkan homeland and the Italian recipient populations has been only partially investigated. In the present study we address the genetic history of Arbereshe people by combining highly resolved analyses of Y-chromosome lineages and extensive computer simulations. A large set of slow- and fast-evolving molecular markers was typed in different Arbereshe communities from Sicily and Southern Italy (Calabria), as well as in both the putative Balkan source and Italian sink populations. Our results revealed that the considered Arbereshe groups, despite speaking closely related languages and sharing common cultural features, actually experienced diverging genetic histories. The estimated proportions of genetic admixture confirm the tight relationship of Calabrian Arbereshe with modern Albanian populations, in accordance with linguistic hypotheses. On the other hand, population stratification and/or an increased permeability of linguistic and geographic barriers may be hypothesized for Sicilian groups, to account for their partial similarity with Greek populations and their higher levels of local admixture. These processes ultimately resulted in the differential acquisition or preservation of specific paternal lineages by the present-day Arbereshe communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Sarno
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | | | - Sara De Fanti
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | - Andrea Quagliariello
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | - Eugenio Bortolini
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | - Gianmarco Ferri
- Dipartimento di Medicina Diagnostica, Clinica e di Sanità Pubblica, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italia
| | - Paolo Anagnostou
- Dipartimento Biologia Ambientale, Sapienza Università di Roma, Roma, Italia.,Istituto Italiano di Antropologia, Roma, Italia
| | - Francesca Brisighelli
- Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.,Sezione di medicina Legale-Istituto di Sanità Pubblica, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Roma, Italia
| | | | | | - Luca Sineo
- Dipartimento Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche, Chimiche e Farmaceutiche, Università degli Studi di Palermo, Palermo, Italia
| | - Donata Luiselli
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | - Alessio Boattini
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
| | - Davide Pettener
- Laboratorio di Antropologia Molecolare, Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche e Ambientali, Università di Bologna, Bologna, Italia
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