DNA retrieved from 1,000-year-old Vikings
- added June 26, 2008
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- shroomfairy
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Strands of 1,000-year-old DNA from 10 Viking skeletons have been retrieved, a team of scientists claims.
If true, the achievement would be notable, since many researchers say it is impossible to recover authentic DNA from ancient humans.
Jorgen Dissing of the University of Copenhagen and colleagues say they retrieved the genetic material from the freshly sampled teeth of skeletons dating back to around A.D. 1000 and found at a non-Christian burial site called Galgedil on the Danish island of Funen.
Wearing protective suits, the researchers removed the teeth from the jaw at the moment the skeletons were unearthed, where they had lain untouched for 1,000 years. Subsequent laboratory procedures were carefully controlled to avoid contamination with modern human DNA.........
................However, analysis of the Viking DNA showed no evidence of contamination with extraneous DNA, Dissing said, and typing of the DNA gave reproducible results and showed that these individuals were just as diverse as contemporary humans.
Analysis of DNA from the remains of ancient humans provides valuable insights into such questions as the origin of genetic diseases, migration patterns of our forefathers and tribal and family patterns.
"A reliable retrieval of authentic DNA opens the way for a valuable use of prehistoric human remains to elucidate the genetic history of past and extant populations," the authors wrote.
If true, the achievement would be notable, since many researchers say it is impossible to recover authentic DNA from ancient humans.
Jorgen Dissing of the University of Copenhagen and colleagues say they retrieved the genetic material from the freshly sampled teeth of skeletons dating back to around A.D. 1000 and found at a non-Christian burial site called Galgedil on the Danish island of Funen.
Wearing protective suits, the researchers removed the teeth from the jaw at the moment the skeletons were unearthed, where they had lain untouched for 1,000 years. Subsequent laboratory procedures were carefully controlled to avoid contamination with modern human DNA.........
................However, analysis of the Viking DNA showed no evidence of contamination with extraneous DNA, Dissing said, and typing of the DNA gave reproducible results and showed that these individuals were just as diverse as contemporary humans.
Analysis of DNA from the remains of ancient humans provides valuable insights into such questions as the origin of genetic diseases, migration patterns of our forefathers and tribal and family patterns.
"A reliable retrieval of authentic DNA opens the way for a valuable use of prehistoric human remains to elucidate the genetic history of past and extant populations," the authors wrote.
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- shroomfairy
- 3 months ago
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