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Published on: September 27, 2018
Ancient host-associated microbes obtained from mammoth remains
Benjamin Guinet1, Nikolay Oskolkov2, Kelsey Moreland3
1Centre for Palaeogenetics, Svante Arrhenius väg 20C, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Bioinformatics and Genetics, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden.
Ancient mammoth DNA reveals six host-associated microbial clades, including Erysipelothrix from a 1.1-million-year-old steppe mammoth. This study unlocks insights into ancient animal microbiomes and their evolutionary history.
Area of Science:
- Paleogenomics
- Microbial Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Human-microbial interactions are well-studied in ancient genomics.
- Research on ancient non-human animal microbiomes is limited, hindering evolutionary insights.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze ancient microbial DNA from mammoth remains spanning over 1 million years.
- To identify host-associated microbes and reconstruct their genomes.
- To establish the oldest authenticated host-associated microbial DNA.
Main Methods:
- Metagenomic screening of 483 mammoth remains.
- Contaminant filtering and ancient DNA damage pattern analysis.
- Phylogenetic inference and whole-genome reconstruction.
Main Results:
- Identified 310 associated microbes, including six host-associated clades (Actinobacillus, Pasteurella, Streptococcus, Erysipelothrix).
- Detected putative virulence factors in some clades, including a Pasteurella linked to elephant deaths.
- Reconstructed Erysipelothrix genomes from the oldest mammoth sample (1.1 million years old).
Conclusions:
- Ancient animal microbiomes can be recovered, providing valuable paleoecological and evolutionary data.
- This study presents the oldest authenticated host-associated microbial DNA.
- Mammoth microbiomes offer a window into Pleistocene ecosystems and host-microbe co-evolution.
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