The Yellow River Delta played a vital role in the development of the Neolithic civilization of China. However, the population history of this region from the Neolithic transitions to the present remains poorly understood due to the lack of ancient human genomes. This especially holds for key Neolithic transitions and tumultuous turnovers of dynastic history. Here, we report genome-wide data from 69 individuals dating to 5,410-1,345 years before present (BP) at 0.008 to 2.49× coverages, along with 325 present-day individuals collected from 16 cities across Shandong. During the Middle to Late Dawenkou period, we observed a significant influx of ancestry from Neolithic Yellow River farmers in central China and some southern Chinese ancestry that mixed with local hunter-gatherers in Shandong. The genetic heritage of the Shandong Longshan people was found to be most closely linked to the Dawenkou culture. During the Shang to Zhou Dynasties, there was evidence of genetic admixture of local Longshan populations with migrants from the Central Plain. After the Qin to Han Dynasties, the genetic composition of the region began to resemble that of modern Shandong populations. Our genetic findings suggest that the middle Yellow River Basin farmers played a role in shaping the genetic affinity of neighboring populations in northern China during the Middle to Late Neolithic period. Additionally, our findings indicate that the genetic diversity in the Shandong region during the Zhou Dynasty may be linked with their complex ethnicities.

Emperor Wu ((sic)(sic), Wudi) of the Xianbei-led Northern Zhou dynasty, named Yuwen Yong ((sic)(sic)(sic), 543-578 CE), was a highly influential emperor who reformed the system of regional troops, pacified the Turks, and unified the northern part of the country. His genetic profile and physical characteristics, including his appearance and potential diseases, have garnered significant interest from the academic community and the public. In this study, we have successfully generated a 0.343 x -coverage genome of Wudi with 1,011,419 single -nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the 1240k panel. By analyzing pigmentation -relevant SNPs and conducting cranial CT -based facial reconstruction, we have determined that Wudi possessed a typical East or Northeast Asian appearance. Furthermore, pathogenic SNPs suggest Wudi faced an increased susceptibility to certain diseases, such as stroke. Wudi shared the closest genetic relationship with ancient Khitan and Heishui Mohe samples and modern Daur and Mongolian populations but also showed additional affinity with Yellow River (YR) farmers. We estimated that Wudi derived 61% of his ancestry from ancient Northeast Asians (ANAs) and nearly one-third from YR farmer -related groups. This can likely be attributed to continuous intermarriage between Xianbei royal families, and local Han aristocrats. 1,2 Furthermore, our study has revealed genetic diversities among available ancient Xianbei individuals from different regions, suggesting that the formation of the Xianbei was a dynamic process influenced by admixture with surrounding populations.

China's Northern and Southern Dynasties period (3rd-6th centuries AD) marked a significant era of ethnic integration in northern China. However, previous ancient DNA studies have primarily focused on northern ethnic groups, with limited research on the genetic formation of the hereditary elite family, especially considering their abundant archaeological record and clear material identity. In this study, we obtain the ancient genome of a hereditary elite family, Gao Bin (, 503 AD-572 AD), at 0.6473-fold coverage with 475,132 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on the 1240k panel. His mitochondrial haplogroup belongs to Z4 and Y-haplogroup to O1a1a2b-F2444∗. The genetic profile of Gao Bin is most similar to that of the northern Han Chinese. He can be modeled as deriving all his ancestry from Late Neolithic to Iron Age Yellow River farmers without influence from Northeast Asia, Korea, or the Mongolian Plateau. Our study sheds light on the genetic formation of hereditary elite families in the context of the Southern and Northern Dynasties ethnic integration.

The first flourishing of the Türkic peoples took place from the 6th to 8th century with the rise of the powerful pastoral nomadic Göktürk Khanate,which was established by the Ashina clan in the region ranging from the Mongolia Plateau to the Caspian Sea(Grousset,1970).Arriving in the wake of the Xiongnu,Xianbei and other nomadic confederations,the impact of the Turks was felt across Eurasia and would ultimately impact much of the West Eurasian ethnolinguistic over the following millennium and centuries.Unfortunately,historical records of the Göktürk Khanate are sporadic and frequently inconsistent.While the Türks no longer existed as a unified regime following the Göktürk Khanate's collapse in the mid-8th century,Turkic itself has survived as a linguistic subfamily despite prolonged contact and admixture with other Eurasian languages.Comprised of over 40 languages,Turkic is the largest group in Altaic linguistic family,and 170 million people speak Turkic languages in over 10 countries.

The Hexi Corridor in northwest China has for millennia served as a crossroads for interactions between East Asia,Central Asia and lands further west,while also connecting the Chinese heart-land and the northern Mongolian Steppe and Tibetan Plateau(TP)to the south(Fig.1a).Previous studies have revealed the details of this cross-continental material and cultural transmission as early as the Bronze Age onwards.Materials and technologies exchanged along the ancient Silk Road included East Asian millets and painted pottery,West Asian wheat and barley,bronze metal-lurgy,domesticated sheep,horses,and cattle[1].

Reconstructing the history of elite communication in ancient China benefits from additional archaeological evidence. We combine textual analysis with new human stable carbon and nitrogen isotope data from two Chu burials in the Jingzhou area to reveal significant dietary differences among Chu nobles of the middle Warring States period ( c . 350 BC). This research provides important new information on the close interaction between the aristocratic families of the Qin and Chu.

本文比较了新疆察吾呼墓地早、中、晚三个时期共80例头骨样本(早期为公元前1000～前600年,中期为公元前600～前400年,晚期为公元前200～公元270年)②与同时代新疆地区及东西方古代人类样本颅骨形态特征的生物学相似性,认为样本间颅骨形态特征相似性与地理距离之间存在对应关系,形态特征相近的人群地理距离也更近,反映了这一时期人群互动交流的情况以及亲疏关系.从考古遗存上看,察吾呼墓地早、中期具有较多北亚和中亚因素,而晚期则出现了更多的东亚特征,这与颅骨形态学分析的结果相符.考古学和颅骨形态测量学的证据表明,察吾呼晚期人群可能是这一时期中国古代西北地区人群大规模移民迁入新疆而形成的.

A high point of Tibetan Plateau (TP) civilization, the expansive Tubo Empire (618-842 AD) wielded great influence across ancient western China. However, whether the Tubo expansion was cultural or demic remains unclear due to sparse ancient DNA sampling. Here, we reported ten ancient genomes at 0.017- to 0.867-fold coverages from the Dulan site with typical Tubo archaeological culture dating to 1308-1130 BP. Nine individuals from three different grave types have close relationship with previously reported ancient highlanders from the southwestern Himalayas and modern core-Tibetan populations. A Dulan-related Tubo ancestry contributed overwhelmingly (95%-100%) to the formation of modern Tibetans. A genetic outlier with dominant Eurasian steppe-related ancestry suggesting a potential population movement into the Tubo-controlled regions from Central Asia. Together with archeological evidence from burial styles and customs, our study suggested the impact of the Tubo empire on the northeast edge of the TP involved both cultural and demic diffusion.

The relationship between archeological culture and ethnicity is invariably complex. This is especially the case for periods of national division and rapid inter-ethnic exchange, such as China’s Sixteen Kingdoms (304–439 CE) and Northern and Southern Dynasties (420–589 CE). Going by tomb shape and grave goods, the Foyemiaowan cemetery at Dunhuang exhibits a typical third–tenth century Han style. Despite this, the ethnic makeup of the Foyemiaowan population has remained unclear. We therefore analyzed 485 Y-chromosomal SNPs and entire mitochondrial genomes of 34 Foyemiaowan samples. Our study yielded the following discoveries: (1) principal component analysis revealed that the Foyemiaowan population was closely clustered with Tibeto-Burman populations on the paternal side and close to Mongolic-speaking populations on the maternal side; (2) lineage comparisons at the individual level showed that the Foyemiaowan population consisted of primarily Tibeto-Burman and Han Chinese related lineages (Oα-M117, 25%;Oβ-F46, 18.75%), partially Altaic speaking North Eurasian lineages (N-F1206, 18.75%) and a slight admixture of southern East Asian lineages (O1b1a2-Page59, 6.25%; O1b1a1-PK4, 3.13%). Similarly, the maternal gene pool of Foyemiaowan contained northern East Asian (A, 4.17%; CZ, 16.67%; D, 20.83%; G, 4.17%; M9, 4.17%), southern East Asian (B, 12.51%; F, 20.83%) and western Eurasian (H, 4.17%; J, 4.17%) related lineages; (3) we discovered a relatively high genetic diversity among the Foyemiaowan population (0.891) in our ancient reference populations, indicating a complex history of population admixture. Archeological findings, stable isotope analysis and historical documents further corroborated our results. Although in this period China’s central government had relinquished control of the Hexi Corridor and regional non-Han regimes became the dominant regional power, Foyemiaowan’s inhabitants remained strongly influenced by Han culture.

运用古蛋白质和古DNA分析,我们对阿勒泰青河县隋唐时期依希根M6石圹墓出土的一匹殉马进行了分子考古综合研究.古蛋白质组学结果明确其为家马,产生的318种肽链均与家马的骨骼形成、发育有关.古DNA结果揭示该殉马极有可能为蒙古马:1)父系Y染色体世系为rAX突变下的一个非欧亚大陆西部常见支系的新分支;2)母系线粒体世系为F1;3)生理特征相关基因推断其为栗色、耐力型、四步态、小型马(与跖骨全长推算马肩高的结果相一致).蒙古马出现在阿勒泰地区的隋唐墓地中,可能反映了当地人群对不同品系的马匹资源的控制,选育蒙古马是一种适应山区环境的选择.

The Hexi Corridor was an important arena for culture exchange and human migration between ancient China and Central and Western Asia. During the Han Dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE), subsistence strategy along the corridor shifted from pastoralism to a mixed pastoralist-agriculturalist economy. Yet the drivers of this transition remain poorly understood. In this study, we analyze the Y-chromosome and mtDNA of 31 Han Dynasty individuals from the Heishuiguo site, located in the center of the Hexi Corridor. A high-resolution analysis of 485 Y-SNPs and mitogenomes was performed, with the Heishuiguo population classified into Early Han and Late Han groups. It is revealed that (1) when dissecting genetic lineages, the Yellow River Basin origin haplogroups (i.e., Oα-M117, Oβ-F46, Oγ-IMS-JST002611, and O2-P164+, M134-) reached relatively high frequencies for the paternal gene pools, while haplogroups of north East Asian origin (e.g., D4 and D5) dominated on the maternal side; (2) in interpopulation comparison using PCA and Fst heatmap, the Heishuiguo population shifted from Southern-Northern Han cline to Northern-Northwestern Han/Hui cline with time, indicating genetic admixture between Yellow River immigrants and natives. By comparison, in maternal mtDNA views, the Heishuiguo population was closely clustered with certain Mongolic-speaking and Northwestern Han populations and exhibited genetic continuity through the Han Dynasty, which suggests that Heishuiguo females originated from local or neighboring regions. Therefore, a sex-biased admixture pattern is observed in the Heishuiguo population. Additionally, genetic contour maps also reveal the same male-dominated migration from the East to Hexi Corridor during the Han Dynasty. This is also consistent with historical records, especially excavated bamboo slips. Combining historical records, archeological findings, stable isotope analysis, and paleoenvironmental studies, our uniparental genetic investigation on the Heishuiguo population reveals how male-dominated migration accompanied with lifestyle adjustments brought by these eastern groups may be the main factor affecting the subsistence strategy transition along the Han Dynasty Hexi Corridor.

上颌窦是位于鼻腔周围最大的骨质腔,由于其所处位置及结构的特殊性,相比额窦、筛窦、蝶窦,上颌窦更容易受到感染产生炎症反应,因此上颌窦炎是现代社会最常见的炎症性疾病之一.通过对黑水国遗址汉代人群上颌窦的观察,发现该墓地中有40.5％的个体上颌窦内出现骨形态的改变,以穗状骨片为主.女性上颌窦炎出现率远高于男性,但无统计学上的显著差异,男性上颌窦炎左侧出现率高于右侧,女性右侧高于左侧.按照不同的年龄段划分,从未成年期到中年期上颌窦炎的出现率随着年龄的增长而增长,但是通过二元逻辑回归检验,发现上颌窦炎与年龄之间并无统计学上的显著意义.在患有上颌窦炎的个体中,有66.7％的个体都出现了牙周病,一半以上的个体出现了龋齿.这似乎预示着上颌窦炎与牙齿疾病之间有着一定的联系.张掖黑水国遗址汉代人群上颌窦炎的高出现率可能是多因素导致的结果,包括寒冷干燥的气候环境、空气污染、牙齿疾病以及病原微生物等.

The MGISEQ-2000 sequencer is widely used in various omics studies, but the performance of this platform for paleogenomics has not been evaluated. We here compare the performance of MGISEQ-2000 with the Illumina X-Ten on ancient human DNA using four samples from 1750BCE to 60CE. We found there were only slight differences between the two platforms in most parameters (duplication rate, sequencing bias, θ, δS, and λ). MGISEQ-2000 performed well on endogenous rate and library complexity although X-Ten had a higher average base quality and lower error rate. Our results suggest that MGISEQ-2000 and X-Ten have comparable performance, and MGISEQ-2000 can be an alternative platform for paleogenomics sequencing.

本文对柘林遗址良渚文化墓地出土的12例人骨进行了系统的体质人类学研究.从颅骨非测量特征看,柘林遗址良渚人群在大类上属于亚洲蒙古人种.柘林遗址女性人群肢骨发育良好,其身高平均值高于以蒋庄遗址和广富林遗址为代表的良渚文化女性人群,但明显低于以姜家梁遗址、牛河梁遗址和五庄果墚遗址为代表的北方人群.古病理研究发现有3例个体出现眶上筛孔,保存有足骨的5例个体其跖骨远端关节面背侧形成新的关节面,同时在胫骨和第一近节趾骨上都发现了与之相关的骨骼改变,这可能与当时居民的某种习惯性姿势有关.

长江下游地区是南方稻作农业的起源中心之一,该地区的史前人类对于中国南方人群的遗传贡献不容忽视,然其古DNA数据尚属空白.通过成功获取大榭遗址一期小型墓葬出土人骨中的2个样本的线粒体基因组序列,发现大榭古人的母系遗传类型分别属于单倍群M7b下的两个支系M7b1a1、M7b*.检索已发表的古代各地区/考古文化的线粒体数据均未出现大榭古人的遗传类型,这一现象可能和缺乏长江流域稻作人群的古DNA数据有关.通过对大榭古人与现代各语系人群的谱系比较,大榭古人可能与侗台语人群的祖先有关,在一定程度上支持部分良渚古人可能沿海岸线南下的说法.

司马光家族延续了上千年,家谱记载较为完整,为谱牒学、历史学、遗传学等人文和自然学科的跨学科研究提供了较好的材料.本研究对11个声称为司马光后代的家族进行了Y-STR分型,结果表明有5个家族的STR单倍型彼此之间十分接近,同属下游单倍群O1a1a1a1a1a-F492+,F656-.因此,我们推断司马光家族的父系遗传类型极有可能属于此单倍群.同时,我们使用BATWING法逐层计算所有支系的最近共祖时间,其结果与根据谱牒资料构建的家族谱系图非常吻合.本项研究为从遗传学角度研究现代家族的父系谱系和重构家族谱牒材料提供了参考,并将有助于进一步研究汉代史学家司马迁家族以及西晋司马王室的源流.

虫坪塬遗址共采集18例人骨标本,包括7例男性和11例女性.从种系特征看,他们属于蒙古人种的东亚类型.与古代组比较,该人群与以晋文化为代表的乔村组、曲村组生物学距离较近,与代表北狄的内阳垣和浮山桥北组生物学距离相对疏远,与宁夏的彭堡组关系最远.从疾病和创伤记录看,口腔疾病中的龋齿、牙釉质发育不全、骨关节炎在该人群中发病率偏高,所见创伤为胫骨腓骨下端的截肢以及肋骨的骨折.

本文对出土于兴平市留位墓地的十六国时期人骨牙齿和关节疾病进行了观察.口腔疾病主要包括龋齿、牙周病、根尖脓肿和牙釉质发育不全,骨关节疾病包括关节炎、强直性脊柱炎等.观察结果显示留位居民龋齿的发病率相比关中地区其他人群偏低,牙周病罹患率较高,前后牙均有发病.牙结石全部出现在后牙.两例强直性脊柱炎患者可能存在遗传学上的关联,期待DNA的检测结果互证.

关中地区是秦人活动的中心地区,出土了大量秦人遗骸.这些遗骸保存有大量有价值的信息,对我们了解古人的体质状况有重要作用.以关中地区出土人骨为基础,从人口的死亡年龄结构、平均身高、肢骨粗壮指数及病理四个方面出发,研究秦人平民阶层与劳工阶层间体质的差异.

本文从性别年龄的构成、种族特征、头骨上的火烧痕迹以及创伤等分析了陕西神木石峁城址外城东门一带出土的头骨.研究发现,祭祀坑女性明显多于男性,且不见未成年个体.从种系特征看,祭祀坑头骨具有长颅、高颅、狭颅、窄面、中眶、阔鼻、面部非常扁平的特征,他们与内蒙古长城沿线一带先秦时期的土著居民具有高度的一致性.祭祀坑头骨上留有明显的火烧痕迹,可能与祭祀的仪式或者卸取头骨有关.头骨上的创伤表明龙山晚期陕北地区人群战争频繁发生.