Ancient genomes from North Africa evidence prehistoric migrations to the Maghreb from both the Levant and Europe.

ABSTRACT: The extent to which prehistoric migrations of farmers influenced the genetic pool of western North Africans remains unclear. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Neolithization process may have happened through the adoption of innovations by local Epipaleolithic communities or by demic diffusion from the Eastern Mediterranean shores or Iberia. Here, we present an analysis of individuals' genome sequences from Early and Late Neolithic sites in Morocco and from Early Neolithic individuals from southern Iberia. We show that Early Neolithic Moroccans (∼5,000 BCE) are similar to Later Stone Age individuals from the same region and possess an endemic element retained in present-day Maghrebi populations, confirming a long-term genetic continuity in the region. This scenario is consistent wit

SUBMITTER: Fregel R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6042094 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature