BaTwa populations from Zambia retain ancestry of past hunter-gatherer groups.

Breton, Gwenna ORCID: 0000-0002-4100-9963, Barham, Lawrence ORCID: 0000-0002-5474-4668, Mudenda, George, Soodyall, Himla, Schlebusch, Carina M ORCID: 0000-0002-8160-9621 and Jakobsson, Mattias ORCID: 0000-0001-7840-7853 (2024) BaTwa populations from Zambia retain ancestry of past hunter-gatherer groups. Nature communications, 15 (1). 7307-. ISSN 2041-1723, 2041-1723

Text BaTwa_Bretonetal_2024_accepted.pdf - Author Accepted Manuscript Download (401kB) | Preview

Abstract

Sub-equatorial Africa is today inhabited predominantly by Bantu-speaking groups of Western African descent who brought agriculture to the Luangwa valley in eastern Zambia ~2000 years ago. Before their arrival the area was inhabited by hunter-gatherers, who in many cases were subsequently replaced, displaced or assimilated. In Zambia, we know little about the genetic affinities of these hunter-gatherers. We examine ancestry of two isolated communities in Zambia, known as BaTwa and possible descendants of recent hunter-gatherers. We genotype over two million genome-wide SNPs from two BaTwa populations (total of 80 individuals) and from three comparative farming populations to: (i) determine if the BaTwa carry genetic links to past hunter-gatherer-groups, and (ii) characterise the genetic affinities of past Zambian hunter-gatherer-groups. The BaTwa populations do harbour a hunter-gatherer-like genetic ancestry and Western African ancestry. The hunter-gatherer component is a unique local signature, intermediate between current-day Khoe-San ancestry from southern Africa and central African rainforest hunter-gatherer ancestry.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Humans, Genetics, Population, Genotype, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Agriculture, Zambia, Black People
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	20 Aug 2024 07:40
Last Modified:	23 May 2026 11:16
DOI:	10.1038/s41467-024-50733-y
Related Websites:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3183870
Disclaimer:	The University of Liverpool is not responsible for content contained on other websites from links within repository metadata. Please contact us if you notice anything that appears incorrect or inappropriate.