The biochemistry of ancient DNA in bone.
The amount of DNA in ancient bone was determined by ethidium bromide staining after the removal of the potent Taq inhibitor, fulvic acid. A complete decalcification and a perfusion protocol were used to recover DNA from bone. A variety of purification techniques including molecular sieve, hydroxyapatite binding and 'Magic' preparations yielded DNA that spanned from 3.4 micrograms/g of bone to below detectable limits. Fulvic acid was shown to interfere with the quantification of DNA derived from ancient human skeletal material one hundred to over seven thousand years old. Scanning UV in the 300 to 230 nm range is a simple and sensitive technique for documenting fulvic acid contamination in ancient bone extracts.
Tuross
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Conservation Analytical Laboratory, Smithsonian Institution, Washington District of Columbia 20560.
D001578:Benzopyrans / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000737:chemistry*; D004247:DNA / Q000032:analysis*; D003648:Decalcification Technique; D004996:Ethidium; D005580:Fossils; D006801:Humans; D019384:Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors; D010163:Paleontology; D013194:Staining and Labeling; D019914:Taq Polymerase
D001578:Benzopyrans; D019384:Nucleic Acid Synthesis Inhibitors; D004247:DNA; D019914:Taq Polymerase; D004996:Ethidium; C005023:fulvic acid