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Inproceedings Reference Paleogenetic analysis of cat mummies from ancient Egypt
Situated at the crossroads of Africa, Asia and Europe, Egypt is considered one of the two potential cradles of cat domestication (Felis catus). Here, cats most likely developed their relationship with humans with a dual role. In fact, on the one hand Egyptian iconography depicts cats as skilled hunters, and on the other hand as companion animals, quietly sitting under the chairs of noble people and as guardians of the deceased (Yoyotte & Vernus, 2005). Egyptian cats were object of a cult dedicated to the goddess Bastet, and from the 1st millennium BC until the 4th century AD were mummified as votive offerings. Previous ancient DNA (aDNA) investigation (Ottoni 2017) showed that cats in ancient Egypt possessed two maternal lineages commonly found in modern domestic cats. Haplotype-C, which spread all over the Old World since Classical Antiquity from Northern Africa, and haplotype-A, which was associated with an earlier cat dispersal from the Levant during the Neolithic. DNA from cat mummies represents a key tool to unravel the role of Egypt as a possible independent centre of domestication, despite the fact that the retrieval of aDNA from mummified tissues has greatly been challenged by DNA preservation. Here, we show the preliminary results of aDNA analyses conducted on more than 50 Egyptian cat mummies from Beni Hassan and Gourna (Luxor), dated to the Greco-Roman period. By comparing different methods (e.g. single and double stranded genomic library construction), we provide an extensive case for screening DNA preservation in arid regions, and within different tissues, such as hair, claws, and petrous bones. We also explore the potential to gain novel insights on the dispersal of domestic cats from Egypt in Classical Antiquity through mitochondrial and genome-wide data.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2023
Inproceedings Reference Paleogenomic insights into cat domestication in ancient Egypt
Situated at the crossroads of Africa, Asia and Europe, Egypt is considered one of the two potential cradles of cat domestication. Zooarchaeological evidence points to cat-human relationships as old as the 4th millennium BC. Later, cats were object of a cult dedicated to the goddess Bastet, and from the 1st millennium BC until the 4th century AD were mummified as votive offerings. Previous ancient DNA (aDNA) investigation showed that cats in ancient Egypt possessed two maternal lineages commonly found in modern domestic cats. Haplotype-C, which spread all over the Old World since Classical Antiquity from Northern Africa, and haplotype-A, which was associated with an earlier cat dispersal from the Levant during the Neolithic. DNA from cat mummies represents a key tool to unravel the role of Egypt as a possible independent centre of domestication, even though the retrieval of aDNA from mummified tissues has greatly been challenged by DNA preservation. Here, we show the preliminary results of aDNA analyses conducted on more than 50 Egyptian cat mummies from Beni Hassan and Gourna (Luxor), dated to the Greco-Roman period. By comparing different methods (e.g. single and double stranded genomic library construction), we provide an extensive case for screening DNA preservation in arid regions, and within different tissues, such as hair, claws, and petrous bones. We also explore the potential to gain novel insights on the dispersal of domestic cats from Egypt in Classical Antiquity through mitochondrial and genome-wide data.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2023
Inproceedings Reference Paleogenomics of European wild and domestic cats
Zooarchaeological and genetic evidence from the last two decades demonstrated that domestic cats originated from the North African and Near Eastern wildcat, Felis silvestris lybica. The commensal relationship between humans and cats most likely started 11 thousand years ago (kya) in the Neolithic Levant. More recently, ancient mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) evidence suggested that domestic cats spread to Southeast Europe as early as 4400 BC, however their dispersal to the rest of Europe is controversial due to the paucity of data. Furthermore, complex scenarios of admixture between domestic and wild populations (e.g., the European wildcat F. s. silvestris and the Asian wildcat F. s. ornata) may have taken place across time, thus leaving a mtDNA-based reconstruction unsatisfactory. Here we show the preliminary results of our paleogenomic investigation from more than 150 cat remains from European archaeological sites dated from 15 kya to the 18th century AD, with a peculiar focus on the Mediterranean area. By screening the samples for endogenous cat DNA content, we provide a framework of ancient DNA preservation in cat remains across time and space. Furthermore, by generating complete mtDNAs and low-coverage nuclear genome data (ranging from 0.2- to 1.4-fold), we were able to refine the chronology of cat dispersal in the Mediterranean region, and to address questions around potential admixture patterns between wild and domestic cat populations. Our paleogenomic dataset lay the foundations for future and more in-depth analyses aimed at understanding the factors determining the evolutionary success of the domestic cat.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2023
Inproceedings Reference Paleotemperature and seasonality in the Early Eocene southern North Sea Basin inferred from fossil fish otoliths.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Inproceedings Reference Paleotemperature and seasonality in the early Eocene southern North Sea Basin inferred from fossil fish otoliths.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Inproceedings Reference Palynological approach of Landscape evolution and human impact in mountainous environment during the Holocene: patterns and chronology of pastoral activities in the Champsaur area (Hautes-Alpes, France) (oral presentation).
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Panégyrique des quatre Ardenne. Si la géographie, la géologie et les matériaux utiles m’étaient contés.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2019
Proceedings Reference Paramètres démographiques du Milan royal (Milvus milvus) nicheur en Belgique.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications
Article Reference Parasitic monogenean flatworms as tags for invasive aquatic vertebrates in africa, using mitochondrial markers and historical collections
Reasons why introduced alien species are major risks to biodiversity include parasite co-introduction and lateral transfer to local hosts, but this parasitological impact is understudied. The origins and identities of introduced organisms are often unknown, including those of their parasite fauna. Recent species monitoring only provides partial answers for want of baseline data: especially in the Global South and in sub-Saharan Africa in particular, where native parasite biodiversity is poorly known. We studied introduced vertebrates (cichlids, sardines, frogs) in Central and Southern African inland waters, and parasitic flatworms (monogeneans) infecting them. Given their obligate one-host lifestyle, these parasites are thought to be more easily co-introduced with their hosts, and to be used as “tags” for the origin and introduction pathway of host populations. Parasites were isolated from hosts sampled from historical collections and in recent fieldwork. Monogenean parasites were morphologically identified to species level, and characterised using nuclear and mitochondrial markers. Using historical fish collections to reconstruct pre-introduction baselines for cichlid parasite communities, we distinguished between native and co-introduced parasite species, and detected parasite transmission to native cichlids. Monogeneans helped identify origins and introduction pathways of invasive sardines. For the notoriously invasive Nile tilapia and African clawed frog, these parasites provided a higher resolution than host genetics. This a proof-of-concept of biodiversity infrastructure and parasites as information sources for invasion biology. Nevertheless, a review of the state-of-the-art of parasitological research on Nile tilapia, an invasive f ish of global economic and ecological importance, shows that work on its parasites mostly overlooks their indicator potential. We recommend more scientific consideration to the parasites of invasive species, using a more integrative approach than is currently often taken.
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2024
Article Reference Parataxonomic classification of eggshells from Pui in the Hateg Basin (Romania)
Examination of forty egg fragments collected from the site of Pui (Hateg Basin) has revealed a greater ootaxonomic diversity that known from complete eggs or clutches found in the other Upper Cretaceous localities from Romania (Grigorescu 1993, Grigorescu et al. 1994; Codrea et al in press). The eggshells obtained by screen-washing, were associated with a diversified microvertebrate remains (including dinosaurs, squamates, mammals…). The egg material correspond to several parataxonomic units (Mikhaïlov et al. 1996) and is referred to 5 morphotypes (discretispherulitic, prolatospherulitic, prismatic, ratite and geckonoid). The study of these ootypes provids us paleogeographical data and clues about the diversity of egg layers in the Campano-Maastrichtian from Romania
Located in Library / RBINS Staff Publications 2016