title: Mitochondrial DNA analysis shows a Near Eastern Neolithic origin for domestic cattle and no indication of domestication of European aurochs.
abstract: The extinct aurochs (Bos primigenius primigenius) was a large type of cattle that ranged over almost the whole Eurasian continent. The aurochs is the wild progenitor of modern cattle, but it is unclear whether European aurochs contributed to this process. To provide new insights into the demographic history of aurochs and domestic cattle, we have generated high-confidence mitochondrial DNA sequences from 59 archaeological skeletal finds, which were attributed to wild European cattle populations based on their chronological date and/or morphology. All pre-Neolithic aurochs belonged to the previously designated P haplogroup, indicating that this represents the Late Glacial Central European signature. We also report one new and highly divergent haplotype in a Neolithic aurochs sample from Germany, which points to greater variability during the Pleistocene. Furthermore, the Neolithic and Bronze Age samples that were classified with confidence as European aurochs using morphological criteria all carry P haplotype mitochondrial DNA, suggesting continuity of Late Glacial and Early Holocene aurochs populations in Europe. Bayesian analysis indicates that recent population growth gives a significantly better fit to our data than a constant-sized population, an observation consistent with a postglacial expansion scenario, possibly from a single European refugial population. Previous work has shown that most ancient and modern European domestic cattle carry haplotypes previously designated T. This, in combination with our new finding of a T haplotype in a very Early Neolithic site in Syria, lends persuasive support to a scenario whereby gracile Near Eastern domestic populations, carrying predominantly T haplotypes, replaced P haplotype-carrying robust autochthonous aurochs populations in Europe, from the Early Neolithic onward. During the period of coexistence, it appears that domestic cattle were kept separate from wild aurochs and introgression was extremely rare.
authors.affiliation: Smurfit Institute of Genetics, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland.
authors.forename: Ceiridwen J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.forename: Ruth
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bollongino
authors.forename: Amelie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scheu
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chamberlain
authors.forename: Anne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tresset
authors.forename: Jean-Denis
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Vigne
authors.forename: Jillian F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Baird
authors.forename: Greger
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Larson
authors.forename: Simon Y W
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Tim H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Heupink
authors.forename: Beth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Shapiro
authors.forename: Abigail R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Freeman
authors.forename: Mark G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Rose-Marie
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Arbogast
authors.forename: Betty
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Arndt
authors.forename: László
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bartosiewicz
authors.forename: Norbert
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Benecke
authors.forename: Mihael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Budja
authors.forename: Louis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chaix
authors.forename: Alice M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Choyke
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Coqueugniot
authors.forename: Hans-Jürgen
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Döhle
authors.forename: Holger
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Göldner
authors.forename: Sönke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hartz
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Helmer
authors.forename: Barabara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Herzig
authors.forename: Hitomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hongo
authors.forename: Marjan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mashkour
authors.forename: Mehmet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ozdogan
authors.forename: Erich
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Pucher
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Roth
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schade-Lindig
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Schmölcke
authors.forename: Rick J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Schulting
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stephan
authors.forename: Hans-Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Uerpmann
authors.forename: István
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Vörös
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Voytek
authors.forename: Daniel G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Bradley
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Burger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic; D002417:Cattle / Q000235:genetics*; D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D005060:Europe; D006239:Haplotypes; D049690:History, Ancient; D008877:Middle East; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial