Saturday, May 7, 2016

Human history traced via the Y chromosome

The history of humanity, as we've read it through DNA, has been written largely by females. Mitochondrial DNA, which is inherited only from our mothers, is short and easy to sequence, so researchers have frequently relied on it to study human DNA, both in present populations and in old bones.

But as DNA sequencing technology has improved, it has become progressively easier to sequence all the DNA that an individual carries. If said individual is a male, the resulting sequence will include the Y chromosome, which is inherited only from fathers. With more data in hand, researchers have been able to perform an analysis of the Y chromosome's history, and they've found that its sequence retains the imprint of both the migrations and technological innovations that have featured in humanity's past....
http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/04/y-chromosomes-history-shows-links-to-migration-tech-developments/


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