https://www.science.org/doi/epdf/10.1126/sciadv.adn8129
Human population dynamics in Upper Paleolithic
Europe inferred from fossil dental phenotypes
Abstract
Despite extensive archaeological research,
our knowledge of the human population
history of Upper PaleolithicEurope remains
limited, primarily due to the scarce
availability and poor molecular preservation
of fossil remains. As teeth dominate the
fossil record and preserve genetic signatures
in their morphology, we compiled a large
dataset of 450 dentitions dating between ~47
and 7 thousand years ago (ka), outnumbering
existing skeletal and paleogenetic datasets.
We tested a range of competing demographic
scenarios using a coalescent-based machine
learning Approximate Bayesian Computation
(ABC) framework that we modified for use with
phenotypic data. Mostly in agreement with but
also challenging some of the hitherto available
evidence, we identified a population turnover
in western Europe at ~28 ka, isolates in western
and eastern refugia between ~28 and 14.7 ka, and
bottle-necks during the Last Glacial Maximum.
Methodologically, this study marks the
pioneering application of ABC to skeletal
phenotypes, paving the way for exciting future
research avenues.
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