% pubman genre = article @article{item_3613929, title = {{Life history and ancestry of the late Upper Palaeolithic infant from Grotta delle Mura, Italy}}, author = {Higgins, Owen Alexander and Modi, Alessandra and Cannariato, Costanza and Diroma, Maria Angela and Lugli, Federico and Ricci, Stefano and Zaro, Valentina and Vai, Stefania and Vazzana, Antonino and Romandini, Matteo and Yu, He and Boschin, Francesco and Magnone, Luigi and Rossini, Matteo and Di Domenico, Giovanni and Baruffaldi, Fabio and Oxilia, Gregorio and Bortolini, Eugenio and Dell{\`u}, Elena and Moroni, Adriana and Ronchitelli, Annamaria and Talamo, Sahra and M{\"u}ller, Wolfgang and Calattini, Mauro and Nava, Alessia and Posth, Cosimo and Lari, Martina and Bondioli, Luca and Benazzi, Stefano and Caramelli, David}, language = {eng}, issn = {2041-1723}, doi = {10.1038/s41467-024-51150-x}, year = {2024}, abstract = {{The biological aspects of infancy within late Upper Palaeolithic populations and the role of southern refugia at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum are not yet fully understood. This study presents a multidisciplinary, high temporal resolution investigation of an Upper Palaeolithic infant from Grotta delle Mura (Apulia, southern Italy) combining palaeogenomics, dental palaeohistology, spatially-resolved geochemical analyses, direct radiocarbon dating, and traditional anthropological studies. The skeletal remains of the infant {\textendash} Le Mura 1 {\textendash} were directly dated to 17,320-16,910 cal BP. The results portray a biological history of the infant{\textquoteright}s development, early life, health and death (estimated at {\textasciitilde}72 weeks). They identify, several phenotypic traits and a potential congenital disease in the infant, the mother{\textquoteright}s low mobility during gestation, and a high level of endogamy. Furthermore, the genomic data indicates an early spread of the Villabruna-like components along the Italian peninsula, confirming a population turnover around the time of the Last Glacial Maximum, and highlighting a general reduction in genetic variability from northern to southern Italy. Overall, Le Mura 1 contributes to our better understanding of the early stages of life and the genetic puzzle in the Italian peninsula at the end of the Last Glacial Maximum. {\copyright} The Author(s) 2024.}}, journal = {{Nature Communications}}, volume = {15}, eid = {8248}, }