News/Press releases

Study challenges long-held assumptions about the Mediterranean Phoenician-Punic civilization, one of the most influential maritime cultures in history

A new study reveals a long-isolated North African human lineage in the Central Sahara during the African humid period more than 7,000 years ago

Far-reaching genetic ties between the Mongolian steppe and Central Europe under Hun rule

Ancient genomes show integration of genetically different groups to the same early medieval Avar society in the Vienna Basin, Austria

Syphilis originated in the Americas prior to the arrival of Columbus, and European colonialism made it globally dominant

Genomes of seven early Europeans show they belonged to a small, isolated group that had recently mixed with Neandertals but left no present-day…

Genetic analysis challenges traditional narratives about Pompeii’s past and reveals Pompeians’ cosmopolitan ancestry

Alexander Herbig receives ERC Synergy Grant to study the complex influences of genetics, environment, society and climate on disease outcomes

Genetic study of the wider Caucasus region shows how movement of people and innovation transfer enabled pastoralists to exploit the steppe zones of…

10,000-year-old human genomes are genetically similar to those of ethnic groups living in the region today

Harald Ringbauer receives ERC Starting Grant to study the DNA of Medieval Black Death victims

An ERC Advanced Grant has been awarded to Wolfgang Haak, head of the Molecular Anthropology Research Group in the Department of Archaeogenetics at the…

Scientists reconstruct ancient genomes of the two most deadly malaria parasites, Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum

Ancient Maya genomes reveal the practice of male twin sacrifice and the enduring genetic legacy of colonial-era epidemics

Genetic analyses of Celtic burial mounds from 500 BCE reveal close relationships and provide new insights into the power structures of early Celtic…

Using ancient DNA and archaeological evidence to unravel the kinship, social practices and transformations of early medieval steppe groups in Europe

Researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (MPI-EVA) in Leipzig, Germany, present the results of 15 years of archaeogenetic…

Ancient genomes show that the main genetic variant responsible for fatty liver diseases dates back to beyond the split from Neanderthals

Burials show that children with Down Syndrome and Edwards Syndrome were recognized as members of their communities

Ancient DNA helps researchers elucidate the structure of a prehistoric community from Southeast Asia