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. 2011 Jun 14;108(24):9788-91.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.1100723108. Epub 2011 May 31.

Ancient DNA reveals male diffusion through the Neolithic Mediterranean route

Marie Lacan  1 , Christine Keyser, François-Xavier Ricaut, Nicolas Brucato, Francis Duranthon, Jean Guilaine, Eric Crubézy, Bertrand Ludes
Affiliations

Ancient DNA reveals male diffusion through the Neolithic Mediterranean route

Marie Lacan et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

The Neolithic is a key period in the history of the European settlement. Although archaeological and present-day genetic data suggest several hypotheses regarding the human migration patterns at this period, validation of these hypotheses with the use of ancient genetic data has been limited. In this context, we studied DNA extracted from 53 individuals buried in a necropolis used by a French local community 5,000 y ago. The relatively good DNA preservation of the samples allowed us to obtain autosomal, Y-chromosomal, and/or mtDNA data for 29 of the 53 samples studied. From these datasets, we established close parental relationships within the necropolis and determined maternal and paternal lineages as well as the absence of an allele associated with lactase persistence, probably carried by Neolithic cultures of central Europe. Our study provides an integrative view of the genetic past in southern France at the end of the Neolithic period. Furthermore, the Y-haplotype lineages characterized and the study of their current repartition in European populations confirm a greater influence of the Mediterranean than the Central European route in the peopling of southern Europe during the Neolithic transition.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Location of the Grands Causses region (bounded by square) and of cave I of Treilles at Saint-Jean-et-Saint-Paul (France).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Map showing mitochondrial lineages shared between Treilles individuals and current European populations. Crosses denote the location of modern-day populations used in the analysis. The gray gradient indicates the percentage of shared lineages between modern local populations and ancient samples: the highest percentages are in black and the weakest are in gray.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Map showing the Y-lineages shared between Treilles individuals and current European populations. Crosses denote the location of modern-day populations used in the analysis. The gray gradient indicates the percentage of shared lineages between modern local populations and ancient samples: the highest percentages are in black and the weakest are in gray.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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