Population Genomics of Stone Age Eurasia
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Date
2022
Authors
Allentoft, Morten
Sikora, Martin
Alba, Refoyo-Martínez
Evan K. Irving-Pease
Fischer, Anders
Barrie, William
Ingason, Andrés
Stenderup, Jesper
Sjögren, Karl-Göran
Pearson, Alice
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
BioRxiv
Abstract
Several major migrations and population turnover events during the later Stone Age (after c. 11,000
cal. BP) are believed to have shaped the contemporary population genetic diversity in Eurasia.
While the genetic impacts of these migrations have been investigated on regional scales, a detailed
understanding of their spatiotemporal dynamics both within and between major geographic regions
across Northern Eurasia remains largely elusive. Here, we present the largest shotgun-sequenced
genomic dataset from the Stone Age to date, representing 317 primarily Mesolithic and Neolithic
individuals from across Eurasia, with associated radiocarbon dates, stable isotope data, and pollen
records. Using recent advances, we imputed >1,600 ancient genomes to obtain accurate diploid
genotypes, enabling previously unachievable fine-grained population structure inferences. We show
that 1) Eurasian Mesolitic hunter-gatherers were more genetically diverse than previously known,
and deeply divergent between the west and the east; 2) Hitherto genetically undescribed huntergatherers
from the Middle Don region contributed significant ancestry to the later Yamnaya steppe
pastoralists; 3) The genetic impact of the transition from Mesolithic hunter-gatherers to Neolithic
farmers was highly distinct, east and west of a “Great Divide” boundary zone extending from the
Black Sea to the Baltic, with large-scale shifts in genetic ancestry to the west. This include an
almost complete replacement of hunter-gatherers in Denmark, but no substantial shifts during the
same period further to the east; 4) Within-group relatedness changes substantially during the
Neolithic transition in the west, where clusters of Neolithic farmer-associated individuals show
overall reduced relatedness, while genetic relatedness remains high until ~4,000 BP in the east,
consistent with a much longer persistence of smaller localised hunter-gatherer groups; 5) A fastpaced
second major genetic transformation beginning around 5,000 BP, with Steppe-related
ancestry reaching most parts of Europe within a 1,000 years span. Local Neolithic farmers admixed
with incoming pastoralists in most parts of Europe, whereas Scandinavia experienced another nearcomplete
population replacement, with similar dramatic turnover-patterns also evident in western
Siberia; 6) Extensive regional differences in the ancestry components related to these early events
remain visible to this day, even within countries (research conducted using the UK Biobank
resource). Neolithic farmer ancestry is highest in southern and eastern England while Steppe-related
ancestry is highest in the Celtic populations of Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall. Overall, our findings
show that although the Stone-Age migrations have been important in shaping contemporary genetic
diversity in Eurasia, their dynamics and impact were geographically highly heterogeneous.
Description
Keywords
Population genomics, ancient DNA, Mesolithic, Neolithic, UK Biobank, article
Citation
Population Genomics of Stone Age Eurasia / Morten E. Allentoft, Martin Sikora, ... Inna Potekhina [et al.] // BioRxiv. - 2022. - P. 1-52. - https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.05.04.490594