MOLECULAR TYPING OF NEOLITHIC HUMAN BONES

Since methods for the recovery of DNA conserved in bones or teeth from archaeological remains have been developed, the molecular analysis of ancient deposits has become possible. In the field of archaeology, one of the most promising approaches is to identify the individuals present, for example, in a mass burial site i.e. to perform a typing of the samples. For this purpose we have used the highly polymorphic control region of the human mitochondrial DNA as a molecular probe. Particular attention was given to improving the extraction procedure for ancient DNA in order to remove inhibitor molecules, and the use of isopropanol precipitation has been proved to be efficient in this respect. From two ancient neolithic bones we have amplified a 384 bp DNA fragment encompassing the first hypervariable segment of the mitochondrial DNA control region. These bones are respectively a fragment of a human femur found in the chalcolithic deposit of Devois de l'Estang, France (4500 to 5000 years BP) and an ankle bone found in Berriac, France (6000 years BP). The amplified fragments are specific for each bone and are different from the same region amplified from the DNA of the two main investigators (CH and VL) as revealed by dot blot hybridization with labelled oligonucleotides and by sequencing of the amplified fragments. In addition, to illustrate the specificity of the method, typing experiments were performed on three other bones ranging from 200 to 3700 years sp. This method based on hybridization is rapid and renders possible the molecular typing of archaeological remains. (C) 1995 Academic Press Limited