Did Milk help the Indo-European expansion?

[Silesian]

Another study by Segurel et al. (2020) also found no LP individual directly associated with the Yamnaya herders (S1 Table). The data are taken from David Reich Lab that is responsible for the controversial Steppe migration theory. The forum owner presented a grand theory in an archived thread that the Bashkirs could represent the last leftovers from PIE R1b subclades such as R1b-M73 or R1b1a1a1 (0% to 55%) and R1b-M269 or R1b1a1a2 (0% to 84%). Looking at these R1b subclades, the Yamnaya were almost identical with the Bashkirs who always drink tea with milk like the British do.

In summary, the −13.910*T allele was first seen in Central Europe 5,950 years ago. Given that most samples around that time do not carry evidence for any steppe ancestry, it is difficult to infer whether it originated in Yamnaya-associated cultures or in European farmers. Regardless, the T allele quickly spread across Eurasia during the late Bronze Age (first appearance at 3,713 BP in Central Asia), which is concomitant with the expansion of Yamnaya-associated cultures. This suggests that steppe populations might have contributed to the spread of the T allele across and outside Europe. This hypothesis is further supported by the fact that the −13.910*T allele is currently found at elevated frequency in Europe and North India (Fig 2), the two places where Yamnaya-associated populations are known to have left some genetic legacy [46]. The T allele then strongly increased in frequency in Europe (reaching 31% in average in the 3,000 BP to present day period) while remaining low in Central Asia (6%), likely reflecting differences in selective pressures between populations.


S1 Table
Contextual information on the ancient samples used for the spatiotemporal analysis of the −13.910*T allele frequency (consisting of 1,434 individuals, of which 874 had enough coverage to call genotypes and thus were used to infer the frequency of LP).


The data are taken from David Reich Lab’s website [58], to which we added information for 3 additional newer publications [28,46,59]. The number in the “rs4988235” column corresponds to the number of reference allele at the −13.910 position (thus 0 means the alternative T allele, and 2 means the reference C allele). This is the information used in Fig 2 and S1 Fig. The last column (“LP status”) gives the phenotypic status of each individual based on its genotype at all reads (see Methods). This is the information used in S2 Fig.



https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7302802/#pbio.3000742.s003

Bashkirs/Bell Beaker Netherlands would have been related to ancient Latins tribe like sample R1016, Castel di Decima (Rome), 900-700 BCE, R1b-Z2103

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03798-4

Dairying enabled Early Bronze Age Yamnaya steppe expansions

For the Early Bronze Age individuals (dating to the onset of the Yamnaya cultural horizon), dairy peptides were recovered from 15 of the 16 individual calculus samples we analysed (Fig. 1b, 2b). All 15 individuals with positive dairy results contained multiple peptide spectral matches to ruminant dairy proteins (including BLG), and some individuals also contained α-S1 casein, α-S2-casein or both. Although many of the milk peptides were only specific to higher taxonomic levels (such as Pecora, an infraorder within Artiodactyla (cow, sheep, goat, buffalo, yak, reindeer, deer and antelope)), others enabled more specific taxonomic classifications, including to family, genus or species. We found Ovis, Capra and Bos attributions, and the calculus of many individuals contained dairy peptides from several species. Notably, we identified Equus milk peptides from the protein BLGI in 2 of 17 Early Bronze Age individuals, both from the southwestern site of Krivyanskiy 9 (3305 to 2633 calibrated years BC (Supplementary Table 5 provides individual accelerator mass spectrometry dating information)). Although the genus Equus includes horse, donkey and kiang, only horse species (E. caballus, E. przewalskii, Equus hemionus and Equus ferus) are archaeologically attested in the steppe in the Early Bronze Age, supporting the Equus identification as horse.

Steppe pasture raised dairy from domesticated cattle or horses could have provided a source for vitamin D/ vitamin K2(the two working together for a healthy immune system).

Bashkir Koumiss is a must try on your journey in Ufa. Prepared from fermented horse milk, it is considered to be one of the most famous and unusual national drinks.

Molenaarsgraaf, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
In 1966 and 1967 a small Late Neolithic–Early Bronze Age settlement was excavated (h 1967/1.) on the Schoonrewoerd stream ridge near Molenaarsgraaf, in the Rhine-Meuse Delta. Apart from one or two possible house plans, three human burials and an ox-burial were found. These burials have become famous in Dutch archaeology because they were well-preserved inhumations and represent clear examples of people buried ‘Bell Beaker style’ in flat graves in a settlement. The layers around the house contained many Bell Beaker and Barbed Wire Beaker potsherds, indicating occupation dating to 2200–1900 BCE.

Petrous bones from three individuals were successfully analysed for aDNA. The first was from an individual aged c. 15 years (Skeleton 1), who was laid on his left side in a crouched position, facing south, in Grave I (dug right next to house I), and yielded sample I13025 (male) R1b-U106+ , dating to 3635±40 BP (GrN-5131; 2136–1892 cal BCE; Louwe Kooijmans 1974). This accords well with a late Veluvian style Bell Beaker positioned at his feet. A fin-ray found in/near his throat may have been the cause of his death. The second was from Grave II, which has become famous because it appears to be the grave of a ‘fisherman’, containing three bone fishhooks, some flint tools and an antler tool, possibly used to lift fish-traps (Louwe Kooijmans 1974). The 18–24 year old individual (Skeleton 2) in this grave lay in a crouched position on the left side, facing west, and yielded sample I13026 (male) R1b-Z2103+ , dating to 3630±40 BP (GrN-5566; 2135–1890 cal BCE). Recent research indicates that both individuals, but especially Skeleton 2 (sample I13026), probably suffered from vitamin D deficiency during childhood (Veselka 2018).

 

[Angela]

Bashkirs/Bell Beaker Netherlands would have been related to ancient Latins tribe like sample R1016, Castel di Decima (Rome), 900-700 BCE, R1b-Z2103

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03798-4

Dairying enabled Early Bronze Age Yamnaya steppe expansions







Steppe pasture raised dairy from domesticated cattle or horses could have provided a source for vitamin D/ vitamin K2(the two working together for a healthy immune system).

Bashkir Koumiss is a must try on your journey in Ufa. Prepared from fermented horse milk, it is considered to be one of the most famous and unusual national drinks.

That's what I used to think as well, Silesian, until I discovered that "pure" cow's milk doesn't have appreciable quantities of Vitamin D. Vitamin D is an additive in modern, pasteurized milk, and, in fact, all the advertising may be a bit of a scam as some papers propose it's not all that accessible to people in that way.

Things like cod liver oil, cod, salmon, tuna, sardines, trout etc., the "oily" fish, are much better sources. Even meat like pork is a better bet.


I think that may help explain how people like the eskimos can live so far north and still be relatively dark skinned. It's their diet.

Milk does have calcium, but calcium is better absorbed with Vitamin D, so putting these fish into one's diet is a very good idea, imo. I usually eat tuna and sardines and either cod or salmon at least 3-4 times a week.

Another interesting fact is that canned fish seems to have more nutrients than "fresh" fish found in most of our markets. It's because canned fish are flash frozen immediately, and then canned within five hours of being caught, whereas the fish in markets has been sitting there for days if not longer. Also, some of the Vitamin D leaches into the olive oil, so don't throw it all away.

The same principal applies to produce. I learned relatively recently that unless you grow your own produce or can go to a farmer and buy fresh harvested produce which you use right away, frozen is better. Problem is, though, the texture. You have to shop around to see if you can get a brand where the vegetables don't turn to mush when defrosted. For soups, though, I now use only frozen, and I buy frozen fruit and eat it semi-frozen or make a smoothie from it.