Hercus Monte
02-22-2014, 12:12 AM
The rise and fall of empires, military campaigns, trade routes, slave trade – all of these have left a mark in peoples’ genes. Previously it was too complicated to decipher such data, writes www.delfi.lt (http://www.delfi.lt/).
However, geneticists have applied new statistical and DNA research methods and attempted to retrace the main events which caused the mixing of nations in the last 4000 years, thus providing historians with a new information source.
Approximately one hundred main events which caused admixture have been identified by geneticists and have solid historical explanations. Still, plenty of events remain the object of research.
For example, it was determined that genomes of many people from the Southern Mediterranean region and the Middle East have gene segments of African origin, which geneticists believe to have appeared between AD 650-1900. This might be a reflection of slave trade which began in the 7th century and their integration into the population.
Children inherit a set of chromosomes from each parent, while in later generations these DNA sets are divided into smaller and smaller segments. By measuring the average size of the segments scientists are able to assess how many generations ago primary sets of chromosomes have intermixed.
What is interesting is that Lithuanians play a fairly significant role in the research.
It was determined that the Kalash nation which lives in Pakistan has DNA segments of ancient European inhabitants – Georgians, Lezgins, Scots, Welsh and Lithuanians.
The statistical analysis has shown that admixture occurred approximately between 990-210 BC. The most probable cause might have been the military campaign of Alexander the Great which happened in 326 BC.
A genetic atlas of human admixture history was created by the University of Oxford, University College London and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. It was published in the Science journal (http://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6172/747), while the atlas is available online (http://www.admixturemap.paintmychromosomes.com/).
However, geneticists have applied new statistical and DNA research methods and attempted to retrace the main events which caused the mixing of nations in the last 4000 years, thus providing historians with a new information source.
Approximately one hundred main events which caused admixture have been identified by geneticists and have solid historical explanations. Still, plenty of events remain the object of research.
For example, it was determined that genomes of many people from the Southern Mediterranean region and the Middle East have gene segments of African origin, which geneticists believe to have appeared between AD 650-1900. This might be a reflection of slave trade which began in the 7th century and their integration into the population.
Children inherit a set of chromosomes from each parent, while in later generations these DNA sets are divided into smaller and smaller segments. By measuring the average size of the segments scientists are able to assess how many generations ago primary sets of chromosomes have intermixed.
What is interesting is that Lithuanians play a fairly significant role in the research.
It was determined that the Kalash nation which lives in Pakistan has DNA segments of ancient European inhabitants – Georgians, Lezgins, Scots, Welsh and Lithuanians.
The statistical analysis has shown that admixture occurred approximately between 990-210 BC. The most probable cause might have been the military campaign of Alexander the Great which happened in 326 BC.
A genetic atlas of human admixture history was created by the University of Oxford, University College London and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology. It was published in the Science journal (http://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6172/747), while the atlas is available online (http://www.admixturemap.paintmychromosomes.com/).