High WHG and distinct HLA signature in the Wartberg Culture of Germany

Angela

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See:
Alexander Immel et al

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/851188v1?rss=1

"[FONT=&quot]The Wartberg culture (WBC, 3,500-2,800 BCE) dates to the Late Neolithic period, a time of important demographic and cultural transformations in western Europe. We perform a genome-wide analysis of 42 individuals who were interred in a WBC collective burial in Niedertiefenbach, Germany (3,300-3,200 cal. BCE). Our results highlight that the Niedertiefenbach population indeed emerged at the beginning of the WBC. This farming community was genetically heterogeneous and carried a surprisingly large hunter-gatherer ancestry component (40%). We detect considerable differences in the human leukocyte antigen gene pool between contemporary Europeans and the Niedertiefenbach individuals whose immune response was primarily geared towards defending viral infections.'

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So, maybe the higher WHG we see in some of the later Bronze Age steppe admixed people came from incorporation of people like these?

I wonder why there was selection against viral infections in particular. A hunter-gatherer would certainly be exposed to a lot of non-helpful bacteria as well.
 

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