Indo-European and Asian origins for Chilean and Pacific chickens revealed by mtDNA
Open Access
- 29 July 2008
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
- Vol. 105 (30), 10308-10313
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0801991105
Abstract
European chickens were introduced into the American continents by the Spanish after their arrival in the 15th century. However, there is ongoing debate as to the presence of pre-Columbian chickens among Amerindians in South America, particularly in relation to Chilean breeds such as the Araucana and Passion Fowl. To understand the origin of these populations, we have generated partial mitochondrial DNA control region sequences from 41 native Chilean specimens and compared them with a previously generated database of ≈1,000 domestic chicken sequences from across the world as well as published Chilean and Polynesian ancient DNA sequences. The modern Chilean sequences cluster closely with haplotypes predominantly distributed among European, Indian subcontinental, and Southeast Asian chickens, consistent with a European genetic origin. A published, apparently pre-Columbian, Chilean specimen and six pre-European Polynesian specimens also cluster with the same European/Indian subcontinental/Southeast Asian sequences, providing no support for a Polynesian introduction of chickens to South America. In contrast, sequences from two archaeological sites on Easter Island group with an uncommon haplogroup from Indonesia, Japan, and China and may represent a genetic signature of an early Polynesian dispersal. Modeling of the potential marine carbon contribution to the Chilean archaeological specimen casts further doubt on claims for pre-Columbian chickens, and definitive proof will require further analyses of ancient DNA sequences and radiocarbon and stable isotope data from archaeological excavations within both Chile and Polynesia.This publication has 35 references indexed in Scilit:
- Dating the late prehistoric dispersal of Polynesians to New Zealand using the commensal Pacific ratProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2008
- Influence of marine sources on14C ages: Isotopic data from Watom Island, Papua New Guinea inhumations and pig teeth in light of new dietary standardsJournal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 2008
- Ancient DNA, pig domestication, and the spread of the Neolithic into EuropeProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2007
- Radiocarbon and DNA evidence for a pre-Columbian introduction of Polynesian chickens to ChileProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2007
- Analysis of mtDNA sequences shows Japanese native chickens have multiple originsAnimal Genetics, 2007
- Missing data and the design of phylogenetic analysesJournal of Biomedical Informatics, 2006
- Molecular evidence for hybridization of species in the genusGallusexcept forGallus variusAnimal Genetics, 2005
- Worldwide Phylogeography of Wild Boar Reveals Multiple Centers of Pig DomesticationScience, 2005
- Deformation Lamellae Parallel to (101̅3) and (0001) in Quartz of the Coeur d'Alene District, IdahoScience, 1967
- Deformation Lamellae Parallel to (10macr13) and (0001) in Quartz of the Coeur d'Alene District, IdahoScience, 1967