Collaborative Research: Using paleogenomic data to decipher genomic effects of European Colonization on indigenous North Americans

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

This project uses recent advances in genetics to compare living Native American peoples with individuals from their ancestral groups. Genetic information (ancient DNA) will be extracted from human skeletal remains from the time period prior to the arrival of Europeans in North America, enabling investigation of changes in the genome that have resulted from European colonialism. By use of a comparative method involving both modern and ancient DNA, the process of intermixing between indigenous peoples and European colonists will be uncovered. In addition, regions of the human genome associated with European-borne disease and other environmental impacts of colonialism on indigenous peoples will be investigated. Coordinated with the research, there will be an intensive one-week workshop during which Native American community members and students will receive hands-on training in molecular biology and bioinformatics as well as leadership training to increase diversity in the field of genomics and related sciences. The project also promotes interdisciplinary graduate training at the intersection of anthropology and genomics.The main objective of this project is to use genomic technology and population-genetic advances to study the genomic and evolutionary effects of European colonization on indigenous peoples of the Americas. An innovative study design will be employed, pairing ancient pre-European contact and modern populations from geographic regions in North America. For each individual, the full exome and flanking regions, including 60,000,000 base pairs, will be analyzed. Comparative analysis of paired populations will provide a basis for examining shared and distinctive aspects of the history of European colonization across regions, with an emphasis on inferring the history of admixture and natural selection. The project focuses on the amount of non-indigenous ancestry in each group and the properties of admixture events that contributed non-indigenous ancestry to Native American communities. European colonists changed the social and natural environments of the Americas, and as a result, selective forces might have rapidly changed the frequency of genetic variants between paired ancient and modern indigenous populations of a geographic region. The study will employ multiple approaches to examine regions of the genome that were subject to selective pressures during the period of European colonialism. Results from this study will be used as a model to infer evolutionary effects of European colonization and to provide a novel approach to investigating this global historical event. Moreover, results concerning ancient populations will also be used to better understand the early demographic history of the Native Americans, as such data are not influenced by the effects of European colonization. The project will continue the successful Summer Internship for Native Americans in Genomics (SING) program and enhance its impact by creating a SING alumni conference that will include a public event with a focus on presentations of social and ethical aspects of genomic research with indigenous communities, as well as a one-day workshop to examine issues related to genomic research and indigenous communities. The long-term goal is to increase the number of Native Americans serving as leaders in careers involving the sciences and to provide opportunities for Native American autonomy in the use of genomics as a tool for revitalization. Lastly, as part of this project, two anthropology Ph.D. students will be trained in genomics. As the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to research increases, students who integrate both social and life sciences will become equipped to secure future careers in the field.