Archaeogenetic analysis of Neolithic sheep from Anatolia suggests a complex demographic history since domestication

Erinç Yurtman,Douglas Baird,Rana Özbal,Elif Sürer,Gözde Atağ,Yasin Gökhan Çakan,Sinan Can Açan,Füsun Özer,Mustafa Özkan,Onur Özer,Torsten Günther,Yılmaz Selim Erdal,Nihan Dilşad Dağtaş,Evangelia Pişkin,Müge Şevketoğlu,Özlem Çevik,N Ezgi Altınışık,Ekin Sağlıcan,Kıvılcım Başak Vural,Eren Yüncü,Çiğdem Atakuman,Maja Krzewińska,Anders Götherström,Gülşah Merve Kılınç,Mohammad Foad Abazari,Ayshin Ghalichi,C Can Bilgin,Can Yumni Gündem ,İnci̇ Togan ,Javad Hoseinzadeh,Pedro Morell Miranda,Dilek Koptekin,Louise Martin,Johannes A Lenstra,Vendela Kempe Lagerholm,Mehmet Somel,Erhan Bıçakcı ,Sevgi Yorulmaz,Damla Kaptan,Reyhan Yaka,Ali Akbaba,Fokke Gerritsen

doi:10.1038/s42003-021-02794-8

Abstract

Sheep were among the first domesticated animals, but their demographic history is little understood. Here we analyzed nuclear polymorphism and mitochondrial data (mtDNA) from ancient central and west Anatolian sheep dating from Epipaleolithic to late Neolithic, comparatively with modern-day breeds and central Asian Neolithic/Bronze Age sheep (OBI). Analyzing ancient nuclear data, we found that Anatolian Neolithic sheep (ANS) are genetically closest to present-day European breeds relative to Asian breeds, a conclusion supported by mtDNA haplogroup frequencies. In contrast, OBI showed higher genetic affinity to present-day Asian breeds. These results suggest that the east-west genetic structure observed in present-day breeds had already emerged by 6000 BCE, hinting at multiple sheep domestication episodes or early wild introgression in southwest Asia. Furthermore, we found that ANS are genetically distinct from all modern breeds. Our results suggest that European and Anatolian domestic sheep gene pools have been strongly remolded since the Neolithic.

Highlights

1234567890():,; Sheep were among the first domesticated animals, but their demographic history is little understood
We found that Anatolian Neolithic sheep (ANS) are genetically closest to present-day European breeds relative to Asian breeds, a conclusion supported by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroup frequencies
We find that Anatolian Neolithic sheep show significantly higher affinity to present-day European breeds than to Asian, African, and east Mediterranean breeds

Summary

Introduction

1234567890():,; Sheep were among the first domesticated animals, but their demographic history is little understood. We found that Anatolian Neolithic sheep (ANS) are genetically closest to present-day European breeds relative to Asian breeds, a conclusion supported by mtDNA haplogroup frequencies. OBI showed higher genetic affinity to present-day Asian breeds These results suggest that the east-west genetic structure observed in present-day breeds had already emerged by 6000 BCE, hinting at multiple sheep domestication episodes or early wild introgression in southwest Asia. Following 7000 BCE, along with other elements of Neolithic lifeways, humans spread domesticated sheep to neighboring regions, including Europe, north Africa, and central Asia[3,4,5] Both zooarchaeological data[3] and genomic evidence[12,13] imply a complex demographic history of domestic sheep.

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion