Coat color variation at the beginning of horse domestication.
The transformation of wild animals into domestic ones available for human nutrition was a key prerequisite for modern human societies. However, no other domestic species has had such a substantial impact on the warfare, transportation, and communication capabilities of human societies as the horse. Here, we show that the analysis of ancient DNA targeting nuclear genes responsible for coat coloration allows us to shed light on the timing and place of horse domestication. We conclude that it is unlikely that horse domestication substantially predates the occurrence of coat color variation, which was found to begin around the third millennium before the common era.
Ludwig
Arne
A
Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, 10252 Berlin, Germany. ludwig@izw-berlin.de
Pruvost
Melanie
M
Reissmann
Monika
M
Benecke
Norbert
N
Brockmann
Gudrun A
GA
Castaños
Pedro
P
Cieslak
Michael
M
Lippold
Sebastian
S
Llorente
Laura
L
Malaspinas
Anna-Sapfo
AS
Slatkin
Montgomery
M
Hofreiter
Michael
M
D000822:Animal Husbandry / Q000266:history*; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001947:Breeding; D004247:DNA; D005060:Europe; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006200:Hair Color / Q000235:genetics*; D049690:History, Ancient; D006736:Horses / Q000235:genetics*; D012800:Siberia
D004247:DNA