A 5700 year-old human genome and oral microbiome from chewed birch pitch

Theis Z. T. Jensen, Jonas Niemann, Katrine Højholt Iversen, Anna K. Fotakis, Shyam Gopalakrishnan, Åshild J. Vågene, Mikkel Winther Pedersen, Mikkel-Holger S. Sinding, Martin R. Ellegaard, Morten E. Allentoft, Liam T. Lanigan, Alberto J. Taurozzi, Sofie Holtsmark Nielsen, Michael W. Dee, Martin N. Mortensen, Mads C. Christensen, Søren A. Sørensen, Matthew J. Collins, M. Thomas P. Gilbert, Martin Sikora, Simon Rasmussen and Hannes Schroeder ()
Additional contact information
Theis Z. T. Jensen: University of Copenhagen
Jonas Niemann: University of Copenhagen
Katrine Højholt Iversen: Technical University of Denmark
Anna K. Fotakis: University of Copenhagen
Shyam Gopalakrishnan: University of Copenhagen
Åshild J. Vågene: University of Copenhagen
Mikkel Winther Pedersen: University of Copenhagen
Mikkel-Holger S. Sinding: University of Copenhagen
Martin R. Ellegaard: University of Copenhagen
Morten E. Allentoft: University of Copenhagen
Liam T. Lanigan: University of Copenhagen
Alberto J. Taurozzi: University of Copenhagen
Sofie Holtsmark Nielsen: University of Copenhagen
Michael W. Dee: University of Groningen
Martin N. Mortensen: The National Museum of Denmark, I.C. Modewegs Vej, Brede
Mads C. Christensen: The National Museum of Denmark, I.C. Modewegs Vej, Brede
Søren A. Sørensen: Museum Lolland-Falster, Frisegade 40
Matthew J. Collins: University of Copenhagen
M. Thomas P. Gilbert: University of Copenhagen
Martin Sikora: University of Copenhagen
Simon Rasmussen: University of Copenhagen
Hannes Schroeder: University of Copenhagen

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract The rise of ancient genomics has revolutionised our understanding of human prehistory but this work depends on the availability of suitable samples. Here we present a complete ancient human genome and oral microbiome sequenced from a 5700 year-old piece of chewed birch pitch from Denmark. We sequence the human genome to an average depth of 2.3× and find that the individual who chewed the pitch was female and that she was genetically more closely related to western hunter-gatherers from mainland Europe than hunter-gatherers from central Scandinavia. We also find that she likely had dark skin, dark brown hair and blue eyes. In addition, we identify DNA fragments from several bacterial and viral taxa, including Epstein-Barr virus, as well as animal and plant DNA, which may have derived from a recent meal. The results highlight the potential of chewed birch pitch as a source of ancient DNA.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-13549-9

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