Article detail · 2018
Population genomics of Mesolithic Scandinavia: Investigating early postglacial migration routes and high-latitude adaptation
- Year
- 2018
- Type
- article
Data source split
- YÖKSİS YÖKSİS article record
- YÖKSİS venue PLOS BIOLOGY
- Catalog match (ISSN) PLOS Biology
- OpenAlex OpenAlex enrichment (abstract, citations, topics)
Abstract
OpenAlex · English
Scandinavia was one of the last geographic areas in Europe to become habitable for humans after the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). However, the routes and genetic composition of these postglacial migrants remain unclear. We sequenced the genomes, up to 57× coverage, of seven hunter-gatherers excavated across Scandinavia and dated from 9,500-6,000 years before present (BP). Surprisingly, among the Scandinavian Mesolithic individuals, the genetic data display an east-west genetic gradient that opposes the pattern seen in other parts of Mesolithic Europe. Our results suggest two different early postglacial migrations into Scandinavia: initially from the south, and later, from the northeast. The latter followed the ice-free Norwegian north Atlantic coast, along which novel and advanced pressure-blade stone-tool techniques may have spread. These two groups met and mixed in Scandinavia, creating a genetically diverse population, which shows patterns of genetic adaptation to high latitude environments. These potential adaptations include high frequencies of low pigmentation variants and a gene region associated with physical performance, which shows strong continuity into modern-day northern Europeans.
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Citations
OpenAlex cited_by_count. Not a WoS or Scopus citation count; those sources have no separate column here.
266 citations
OpenAlex cited_by_count (cache / database)
44 publications in the local catalog that cite this work (OpenAlex reference match; not the full global list).
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- Ancient DNA from Mesopotamia suggests distinct Pre-Pottery and Pottery Neolithic migrations into Anatolia 2022
- The genetic history of the Southern Arc: A bridge between West Asia and Europe 2022