The first genome sequenced from ancient Egypt revealed surprising bloodlines, scientists say.
In a long first, researchers sequenced the entire genome of an ancient Egyptian, revealing unprecedented insights about the ancestors of a man who lived while building the first pyramids.
The man's body was found buried in a sealed clay pot in Nuverat, a village south of Cairo, living sometime between 4,500 and 4,800 years ago, making his DNA the oldest ancient Egyptian sample to date. The researchers concluded that 80% of his genetic material came from ancient people in North Africa, while 20% traced back to people in West Asia and Mesopotamia.
Their findings, published Wednesday in Nature, provide new clues to new clues that suggest ancient cultural links between ancient Egypt and fertile crescent societies, including modern Iraq (formerly known as Mesopotamia), Iran and Jordan. Although scientists doubt these connections, for now, their only evidence is archaeology, not genetics.
Scientists also studied the man's bones to identify more information about his identity and found evidence of a lot of effort in the process of longevity.
“Patching together all the clues of this person's DNA, bones and teeth allows us to build a comprehensive picture,” Dr. Adeline Morez Jacobs, a researcher at John Morse University in Liverpool, England, said in a statement. “We hope that when this movement from West Asia begins, future DNA samples from ancient Egypt can be expanded.”
Pottery and other artifacts suggest that Egyptians may have traded goods and knowledge in neighboring areas, but according to the study authors, genetic evidence suggests that it is difficult to make recent differences in the mixed ancient civilizations more difficult because conditions such as heat and humidity quickly reduce DNA. However, the man's body was preserved in its burial container very clearly, and scientists were able to extract DNA from the teeth of one of the skeletons.
While these findings capture only one person’s genetic background, experts say additional work can help answer lasting questions about the ancestors of Egyptians who lived the earliest times when the longest continued known civilizations.
In 1902, a pottery containing the man's body was discovered. -Galstein Archaeological Museum, University of Liverpool
Decoding DNA puzzles
Swedish geneticist Svante Pääbo won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2022 to sequence the first genome of Neanderthals. He made a pioneering attempt 40 years ago to extract and study DNA from ancient Egyptian remains, but he was unable to sequence the genome. Poor DNA preservation always poses an obstacle.
Since then, the researchers have used “target-rich sequencing” to pair the genomes of three ancient Egyptians to focus on specific markers of interest in the specimen DNA. The remains used in this work date back to the latest period in Egyptian history, from 787 BC to AD 23.
In the past decade, final technological improvements have paved the way for the authors of the new study to ultimately sequence the entire ancient Egyptian genome.
“The technology we used for this study is often called 'shot shotgun sequencing', which means we sequenced all DNA molecules isolated from the teeth,” wrote study co-author Dr. Linus Girdland-Flink. “Our method means that any future researchers can access the entire genome we published to find additional information. It also means that additional sampling of bones or teeth is not required to return that individual.”
The man died during the transition period between the early Egyptian Kingdom and the Old Kingdom period because the funeral has not been buried yet because it was not the standard practice and it is likely that his DNA was retained, the researchers said.
“It could be a lucky situation – maybe we found the needle in the haystack,” said Girdland-Flink. “But I think in the next few years we will see other genomes published from ancient Egypt, probably people buried in ceramic pots.”
Despite the overall hot climate in Egypt, the temperature in the region is relatively stable, which is a key factor in long-term genetic preservation, Girdland-Flink said. He said the climate is clay pots and rock tombs used for burials, which are placed in all people and play a role in preventing the person's DNA from deteriorating.
Clay pots were found in the rocks of Nuwayrat, south of Cairo. – Museum of Archaeology, University of Liverpool
Tracking unique ancestry
For the analysis, researchers collected the root apices of a small number of men's teeth. Girdland-flink said they analyzed dentin, a dental tissue that locks teeth into the jaw, because it is an excellent tool for DNA preservation.
Of the seven DNA extracts removed from the teeth, two DNA extracts were retained, sufficient for sequencing. The scientists then compared the ancient Egyptian genome to the genomes of more than 3,000 modern and 805 ancient people.
The chemical signal in the man's teeth, called isotopes, records information about the environment he grew up and the diet consumed as the teeth grow. The results are consistent with childhood spent in the hot and arid climate of the Nile Valley, consuming wheat, barley, animal protein and Egypt-related plants.
However, 20% of the man's lineage best matches the older genome of Mesopotamia, suggesting that people's movement toward Egypt at some point may be quite large, Girdland-Flink's.
Dental anthropologist and study co-author Joel Irish also performed forensic measurements of men's teeth and skulls, which best matched Westerners. The Irishman is a professor at the School of Biological and Environmental Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University.
The study provides a glimpse of critical periods and locations where samples have never been seen before, said IOSIF Lazaridis, a research assistant in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. Rather than participate in the new study, Lazaridis studied ancient DNA samples from Mesopotamia and The Levant, including part of modern Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Israel, Palestinian Territory, Jordan and Turkey.
Now, the body is preserved at the Liverpool World Museum. – Museum of Archaeology, University of Liverpool
Lazaridis said researchers have long questioned whether the starting point of dynastic civilization is the indigenous people of North Africa or the Levant.
“This sample does tell us that in such early days, Egyptians were mostly North African descent, but in Mesopotamian descent contributions,” Lazaridis said. “This makes total sense geographically.”
Lazaridis said he hoped it was the beginning of more research in Egypt, acknowledging that while mummies helped preserve the soft tissue of the mummy, the chemical treatments used during mummification were not ideal for ancient DNA preservation.
“I think it's feasible to extract DNA from the beginning of Egyptian civilization, and now we can start writing about Egypt's genetic history,” he said.
A mysterious funeral
By studying the man's skeleton, the team was able to determine that he was 5 feet tall and over 5 feet, between the ages of 44 and 64, and probably closer to the end of that range – “In that period, it was probably the 80s, maybe today,” the Irishman said.
Genetic analysis showed his eyes, hair and dark skin. His bones tell another story: he worked hard in life, which seemed to conflict with the manner in which he was buried in a ceramic ship.
The Irish said the signs of arthritis and osteoporosis in his bones were obvious, and the characteristics of the back of his skull and behind his vertebrae indicated that he had been looking forward and leaning forward for most of his life. Muscle markings indicate that he stretched out his arm in front of him for a long time and carried heavy material. The ischium of his pelvis was also exaggerated, which happened when someone sat on a hard surface for decades. His right foot also showed signs of arthritis.
The Irish carefully studied images of different occupations of the ancient Egyptians, including pottery manufacturing, masonry, welding, agriculture and weaving, to figure out how the person might have spent his time.
“Despite the environment, these clues point to pottery, including the use of pottery wheels, which arrived in Egypt around the same time,” the Irishman said. “That is, potters who do not normally receive this treatment do not expect his advanced burial. Perhaps he was very skilled or successful in improving his social status.”
In the six thousand BC, before the sharing of the pottery wheel and writing system between cultures, domesticated flora and animals were distributed in the fertile crescent moon and Egypt, as society changed from becoming hunter-gatherers to living in permanent settlements. Now, the research team wants to know if human immigration is also part of this transition. Other ancient genomes from Egypt, Africa and the fertile crescent moon may provide answers about who lives where and when.
“This is just part of the puzzle of genetic mutation in humans: Everyone who has lived and their genome represents a unique work in this puzzle,” Girdland-Flink said in an email. “While we can never sort out everyone's genome, my hope is that we can collect enough diverse samples from around the world to accurately reconstruct the key events in human history that shape our identity today.”
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