% pubman genre = thesis
@phdthesis{item_3255559,
title = {{Paleogenetic investigations of hominin diversity and dispersals in Eurasian prehistory}},
author = {Posth, Cosimo},
language = {eng},
year = {2017},
abstract = {{Ancient DNA (aDNA) is able to provide genetic snapshots into the human past{\textless}br{\textgreater}that can be linked together to study evolutionary processes and demographic{\textless}br{\textgreater}patterns impossible to uncover with the study of modern-day DNA alone. In this{\textless}br{\textgreater}thesis I make use of major methodological {\textquotedblleft}game changers{\textquotedblright} in the field of aDNA{\textless}br{\textgreater}in order to reconstruct complete mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), as well as{\textless}br{\textgreater}genome-wide nuclear data (nDNA) from ancient human specimens. The{\textless}br{\textgreater}combination of next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies and target{\textless}br{\textgreater}enrichment paired up with sampling of different anatomical elements, enabled me{\textless}br{\textgreater}to expand the amount of analyzable hominin remains ranging from Pleistocene{\textless}br{\textgreater}European hunter-gatherers to Holocene farmers in Remote Oceania. I first{\textless}br{\textgreater}investigated the mtDNA of late Neandertals from Goyet cave in Belgium and of{\textless}br{\textgreater}an archaic femur from Hohlenstein-Stadel in southwest Germany to explore the{\textless}br{\textgreater}changes in genetic diversity of this extinct hominins through time and provide the{\textless}br{\textgreater}temporal interval for a putative African gene flow event into Neandertal{\textless}br{\textgreater}populations. In addition, I carried out two studies that explored demographic{\textless}br{\textgreater}changes in European Upper Paleolithic and Mesolithic hunter-gatherers by{\textless}br{\textgreater}means of both mtDNA and nDNA, and revealed population structure and{\textless}br{\textgreater}unexpected genetic turnovers in Ice Age Europe. By expanding the temporal and{\textless}br{\textgreater}geographical distribution of genomic data it was able to infer population{\textless}br{\textgreater}movements in European prehistory and compare them to climatic and{\textless}br{\textgreater}archaeological records over almost 40,000 years. While the formation of some{\textless}br{\textgreater}genetic clusters tightly matches to the associated archaeological changes across{\textless}br{\textgreater}Europe, other major genomic transformations seem to be more influenced by{\textless}br{\textgreater}environmental fluctuations. In the last project, I contributed in producing aDNA of{\textless}br{\textgreater}four individuals among the first settlers of Vanuatu and Tonga in the Southwest{\textless}br{\textgreater}Pacific. Sampling the petrous portion of their temporal bones allowed me to{\textless}br{\textgreater}retrieve genomic data from climatic conditions unfavorable for DNA preservation.{\textless}br{\textgreater}Those genomes highlight the role of previously unknown dispersals in shaping{\textless}br{\textgreater}the ancestry of present-day people in Remote Oceania. Here, I take a time trip to{\textless}br{\textgreater}shed light into the genetic history of our ancestors and closest extinct relatives.}},
}