Dental calculus microbiome
Dental calculus offers a rich source of information about the life and death of past populations. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of a novel approach for concurrently analyzing the microbiome and INNUL human DNA markers from dental calculus samples, with the aim of maximizing the information yield from skeletal human remains whereas minimizing their damage. To this end, we integrated high-throughput 16S rDNA sequencing with the InnoTyper®21 system. This method enabled the identification of at least 14 Alu-based INNUL markers and the amelogenin marker for sex determination from all eight ancient samples. Furthermore, numerous bacterial species were identified and associated with specific human microbiomes and potential health conditions. Findings of this study provide compelling evidence that dental calculus can serve as a viable source for both human microbiome analysis and genetic identity profile determination, while simultaneously minimizing damage to skeletal remains.