This study analyzes the oral microbiome of King Richard III using dental calculus metagenomics, finding it similar to other northern European populations despite his royal status and diet.

American Journal of Biological Anthropology · Sep 1, 2026Peer-reviewedMicrobiology

Admixture as a source for HLA variation in Neolithic European farming communities

Nicolas Antonio da Silva, Onur Özer, Magdalena Haller-Caskie, Yan-Rong Chen, Daniel Kolbe, Sabine Schade-Lindig, Joachim Wahl, Carola Berszin, Michael Francken, Irina Görner, Kerstin Schierhold, Joachim Pechtl, Gisela Grupe, Christoph Rinne, Johannes Müller, , Ben Krause‐Kyora

The paper examines HLA variation in Neolithic European farming communities, finding increased HLA diversity due to admixture with western hunter-gatherers, but lower diversity compared to modern populations.

Genome biology · Feb 28, 2025Peer-reviewedGenetics

Neolithic introgression of IL23R-related protection against chronic inflammatory bowel diseases in modern Europeans

Ben Krause‐Kyora, Nicolas Antonio da Silva, Elif Kaplan, Daniel Kolbe, Sabine Schade-Lindig, Joachim Wahl, Carola Berszin, Michael Francken, Irina Görner, Kerstin Schierhold, Joachim Pechtl, Gisela Grupe, Johannes Müller, Inken Wohlers, Hauke Busch, , Stefan Schreiber

The paper traces the origin and spread of the IL23R variant rs11209026-A in Europe, linking its frequency changes to Neolithic agricultural practices and its protective role against inflammatory bowel diseases.

EBioMedicine · Feb 8, 2025Peer-reviewedEvolutionary Biology

Socio-cultural practices may have affected sexual dimorphism in stature in Early Neolithic Europe

Samantha L. Cox, Nicole Nicklisch, Michael Francken, Joachim Wahl, Harald Meller, Wolfgang Haak, Kurt W. Alt, Eva Rosenstock, Iain Mathieson

The paper examines how socio-cultural practices influenced sexual dimorphism in stature among Early Neolithic European populations, finding that cultural factors, not environment or genetics, primarily drove height disparities.

bioRxiv · Feb 21, 2023 · PreprintGenetics

An integrative skeletal and paleogenomic analysis of prehistoric stature variation suggests relatively reduced health for early European farmers

Stephanie Marciniak, Christina M. Bergey, Ana María Silva, Agata Hałuszko, Mirosław Furmanek, Barbara Veselka, Petr Velemínský, Giuseppe Vercellotti, Joachim Wahl, Gunita Zariņa, Cristina Longhi, Jan Kolář, Rafael Garrido Peña, Raúl Flores Fernández, Ana Mercedes Herrero Corral, , George H. Perry

This study integrates skeletal and paleogenomic data from ancient Europeans to show that early farmers were shorter than expected based on genetic scores, suggesting poorer health.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · Apr 6, 2022Peer-reviewedGenomics

Massive migration from the steppe is a source for Indo-European languages in Europe

Wolfgang Haak, Iosif Lazaridis, Nick Patterson, Nadin Rohland, Swapan Mallick, Bastien Llamas, Guido Brandt, Susanne Nordenfelt, Eadaoin Harney, Kristin Stewardson, Qiaomei Fu, Alissa Mittnik, Eszter Bánffy, Christos Economou, Michael Francken, , Kurt We

The paper analyzes ancient DNA data from 69 Europeans to show that a massive migration from the steppe contributed to the genetic makeup of present-day Europeans and supports a steppe origin for some Indo-European languages.

bioRxiv · Feb 10, 2015Genetics

Ancient human genomes suggest three ancestral populations for present-day Europeans

Iosif Lazaridis, Nick Patterson, Alissa Mittnik, Gabriel Renaud, Swapan Mallick, Karola Kirsanow, Peter H. Sudmant, Joshua G. Schraiber, Sergi Castellano, Mark Lipson, Bonnie Berger, Christos Economou, Ruth Bollongino, Qiaomei Fu, Kirsten Bos, , Claudio M.

The paper analyzes ancient genomes to show present-day Europeans derive from three populations: WHG, ANE, and EEF, with EEF having Basal Eurasian ancestry.

Nature · Sep 17, 2014Peer-reviewedGenetics