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8 unusual facts about Archaeogenetics of the Near East


Archaeogenetics of the Near East

According to DNA testing, Druze are remarkable for the high frequency (35%) of males who carry the Y-chromosomal haplogroup L, which is otherwise uncommon in the Mideast (Shen et al. 2004).

In 2005, National Geographic launched The Genographic Project, led by 12 prominent scientists and researchers, to study and map historical human migration patterns by collecting and analyzing DNA samples from hundreds of thousands of people from around the world.

It was reported in the PBS description of the National Geographic TV Special on this study entitled "Quest for the Phoenicians" that ancient DNA was included in this study as extracted from the tooth of a 2500 year-old Phoenician mummy.

The debate between Wells and Zalloua was whether haplogroup J2 (M172) should be identified as that of the Phoenicians or that of its "parent" haplogroup M89 on the YDNA phylogenetic tree.

The archaeogenetics of the Near East involves the study of DNA or ancient DNA, identifying haplogroups and haplotypes of ancient skeletal remains from both Y-DNA, and mtDNA and other autosomal DNA for populations of the Ancient Near East (i.e., the modern Middle East including Egypt, Iran (Persia), Iraq (Mesopotamia), the Levant, Turkey (Anatolia), Arabia, Northern Africa, etc.

Iraqi mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroup distribution is similar to that of Iran, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Georgia, and Armenia, whereas it substantially differs from that observed in the Arabian Peninsula and North Africa.

Genetic studies conducted by Cavalli-Sforza have revealed that Iranians have a weak mtDNA correlation with Semitic speaking Near Eastern groups, with more similarities in Mitochondrial DNA to surrounding Indo-European speaking populations of Asia.

Contamination from handling and intrusion from microbes create obstacles to the recovery of Ancient DNA.



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