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McMaster Ancient DNA News

Evolution of the Mylodontidae and Arborealism in Sloths

Nuclear and mitochondrial data from Darwin's extinct ground sloth shows close relation to two-fingered sloths and supports multiple origins for arboreality.
May 25, 2018

Ancient DNA and Isotopes Reveal Roman Italian Ancestry and Family Relationships

McMaster Researcher reveal complex population dynamics in the wake of Roman subjugation of the Italian Peninsula (3rd century BCE)
May 09, 2018

Whole genomes reveal messy history of promiscuous proboscideans

A new collaboration between researchers at the McMaster Ancient DNA Centre and international researchers from across the United States, Europe, and Australia has resulted in the most comprehensive study of elephant evolution to-date.
Feb 27, 2018

Testing the validity of stable isotope analyses of dental calculus as a proxy in paleodietary studies

Stable isotopic analyses (δ13C, δ15N) of dental calculus have been suggested as a proxy for the study of diet of ancient populations but questions about their validity have been raised.
Feb 06, 2018

Congratulations Katherine Eaton, MacData Fellow

Congratulations to Katherine Eaton on being named a MacData Fellow. Her proposed research focuses on mining vast international repositories of DNA sequencing information, to obtain and complete new genomes from the causative agent of Plague - Yersinia pestis.
Jan 24, 2018

McMaster Ancient DNA Centre helps unravel the mysteries surround the life and death of Jumbo – the world’s first elephant superstar

The McMaster Ancient DNA Centre is pleased to have been a part of two documentaries elucidating the life history of Jumbo the elephant – Jumbo: The Life of an Elephant Superstar (CBC) and Attenborough And The Giant Elephant(BBC).
Jan 07, 2018

The paradox of HBV evolution as revealed from a 16th century mummy

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a ubiquitous viral pathogen associated with large-scale morbidity and mortality in humans. However, there is considerable uncertainty over the time-scale of its origin and evolution.
Jan 04, 2018

Congratulations Matthew Emery

The entire McMaster aDNA Centre would like to congratulate Matthew Emery for successfully defending his PhD research.
Dec 07, 2017

Newly established Shelly Saunders/Koloshuk Family Scholarship to attract world’s best anthropology graduate students

A $1 million dollar gift by Victor Koloshuk to honour the legacy of his late wife, the renowned biological anthropologist Shelly Saunders, is being used to establish the Shelley Saunders/Koloshuk Family Scholarship.
Nov 07, 2017