Ancient oral microbiomes support gradual Neolithic dietary shifts towards agriculture

Andrea Quagliariello (), Alessandra Modi (), Gabriel Innocenti, Valentina Zaro, Cecilia Conati Barbaro, Annamaria Ronchitelli, Francesco Boschin, Claudio Cavazzuti, Elena Dellù, Francesca Radina, Alessandra Sperduti, Luca Bondioli, Stefano Ricci, Miriam Lognoli, Maria Giovanna Belcastro, Valentina Mariotti, David Caramelli, Marta Mariotti Lippi, Emanuela Cristiani, Maria Elena Martino, Italo Maria Muntoni and Martina Lari
Additional contact information
Andrea Quagliariello: University of Padua
Alessandra Modi: University of Florence
Gabriel Innocenti: University of Padua
Valentina Zaro: University of Florence
Cecilia Conati Barbaro: “Sapienza” University of Rome
Annamaria Ronchitelli: University of Siena
Francesco Boschin: University of Siena
Claudio Cavazzuti: University of Bologna
Elena Dellù: Soprintendenza ABAP per la Città Metropolitana di Bari
Francesca Radina: Soprintendenza ABAP per la Città Metropolitana di Bari
Alessandra Sperduti: Sezione di Bioarcheologia - Museo delle Civiltà
Luca Bondioli: Sezione di Bioarcheologia - Museo delle Civiltà
Stefano Ricci: University of Siena
Miriam Lognoli: University of Florence
Maria Giovanna Belcastro: University of Bologna
Valentina Mariotti: University of Bologna
David Caramelli: University of Florence
Marta Mariotti Lippi: University of Florence
Emanuela Cristiani: “Sapienza” University of Rome
Maria Elena Martino: University of Padua
Italo Maria Muntoni: Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio per le Province di Barletta - Andria - Trani e Foggia
Martina Lari: University of Florence

Nature Communications, 2022, vol. 13, issue 1, 1-14

Abstract: Abstract The human microbiome has recently become a valuable source of information about host life and health. To date little is known about how it may have evolved during key phases along our history, such as the Neolithic transition towards agriculture. Here, we shed light on the evolution experienced by the oral microbiome during this transition, comparing Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers with Neolithic and Copper Age farmers that populated a same restricted area in Italy. We integrate the analysis of 76 dental calculus oral microbiomes with the dietary information derived from the identification of embedded plant remains. We detect a stronger deviation from the hunter-gatherer microbiome composition in the last part of the Neolithic, while to a lesser extent in the early phases of the transition. Our findings demonstrate that the introduction of agriculture affected host microbiome, supporting the hypothesis of a gradual transition within the investigated populations.

Date: 2022
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-34416-0

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34416-0

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