Palaeoproteomic and genetic insights into millennial-scale dairy consumption in Armenia
Mariya Antonosyan, Anahit Hovhannisyan, Patrick Roberts, Lara M. Cassidy, Satenik Mkrtchyan, Հասմիկ Սիմոնյան, Arsen A. Bobokhyan, Levon Aghikyan, Пилипосян Ашот Суренович, Ruben Badalyan, Nzhdeh Yeranyan, Artak V. Gnuni, Hayk Avetisyan, Mikayel Badalyan, Armine Gabrielyan, , Shevan Wilkin
This study combines palaeoproteomic and genetic analyses to show that dairy consumption in Armenia dates back to the late fourth millennium BCE, but lactase persistence variants remained rare, suggesting cultural adaptations to fermented dairy.
bioRxiv · Aug 26, 2025 · PreprintEvolutionary Biology