Combining Multiple Investigative Approaches to the Geographic Spread of Pastoralism

提取和测序保存在动物骨骼中的古代DNA的新实验室方法为动物驯化和畜群动物的深层历史研究带来了令人兴奋的新基因组视角。该研究小组将古基因组学方法与考古学方法相结合，以调查牛，绵羊和山羊的历史。这些动物最早在10,000多年前在中东被驯化。大约5000-6000年前，它们通过跨欧亚的交流网络被引入东亚。该研究项目的目标是澄清采用牛，绵羊和山羊的时间，探索它们的遗传历史，并调查该地区扩大畜牧业的长期文化和环境因素。特别令人感兴趣的问题是，古代人是否尝试过管理野生牛科动物的种群，如灭绝的野生欧洲野牛。由于很少有古基因组学研究已经做了畜群动物，这项工作增加了一个关键的缺失维度的学术理解动物驯化。古代DNA和动物骨骼也为向学生和公众介绍考古科学提供了一个令人兴奋的途径。该项目为学生提供了参与实地考察和实验室研究的机会，通过考古学教授STEM的课程，以及考古学公共宣传活动。该合作研究项目的重点是从新石器时代和青铜时代考古遗址出土的动物骨骼。项目团队对来自多个时期遗址的动物骨骼进行全面的动物考古学分析，并选择关键骨骼样本进行直接放射性碳测年。从骨骼样本中提取古代DNA并进行测序，研究小组使用生物信息学方法来确定野生和驯养牛科动物种群之间混合的证据。最后，该项目团队结合动物考古学和古代DNA数据，以解决有关畜牧业出现的社会和环境问题。其中最重要的问题是畜牧业的扩张如何改变了当地的栖息地和改变了当地动物物种的分布。这些方法有助于正在进行的考古学研究的畜牧业的传播和动物管理系统的环境影响。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并已被认为是值得通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估的支持。

New laboratory methods for extracting and sequencing ancient DNA preserved in animal bones have led to exciting new genomic perspectives for the study of animal domestication and the deep histories of herd animals. The research group combines paleogenomic methods with archaeological approaches to investigate the history of cattle, sheep, and goats. These animals were first domesticated in the Middle East over 10,000 years ago. They were then introduced to East Asia about 5000-6000 years ago through trans-Eurasian exchange networks. The goal of this research project is to clarify the timing of the adoption of cattle, sheep, and goats, explore their genetic histories, and investigate the long-term cultural and environmental dimensions of expanding pastoralism in the region. Of special interest is the question of whether ancient people experimented with managing wild bovid populations such as the extinct wild aurochs. Because little paleogenomic research has been done on herd animals, this work adds a critical missing dimension to the scholarly understanding of animal domestication. Ancient DNA and animal bones also provide an exciting avenue for introducing students and members of the public to archaeological science. The project offers opportunities for student participation in fieldwork and laboratory research, courses that teach STEM through archaeology, and archaeological public outreach activities.This collaborative research project focuses on animal bones excavated from Neolithic and Bronze Age archaeological sites. The project team conducts comprehensive zooarchaeological analyses of animal bones from sites representing multiple time periods and selects key bone samples for direct radiocarbon dating. Ancient DNA is extracted and sequenced from bone samples, and the research team uses bioinformatics methods to identify evidence of admixture between wild and domesticated bovid populations. Finally, the project team combines the zooarchaeological and ancient DNA data to address social and environmental questions about the emergence of pastoralism. Among the most important of these questions is how the expansion of pastoralism changed native habitats and altered distributions of native animal species. These approaches contribute to ongoing archaeological research on the spread of pastoralism and the environmental impacts of animal management systems.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.