Sequenced genome of boy who was sacrificed by the Inca 500 years ago points to extent of genetic diversity in the Andes before the Spanish arrivedArchaeologists and geneticists have sequenced the genome of a boy sacrificed 500 years ago during an Incan ritual in the Andes,finding a previously unidentified lineage that hints at genetic diversity before the Spanish landed in the Americas. Spanish geneticists extracted the DNA of a mummy found in the icy heights of Aconcagua, the world’s tallest mountain outside Asia, and near the border of Argentina and Chile. The mummy,of a seven-year-ragged boy who was sacrificed by the Inca, showed a DNA signature that has virtually disappeared in contemporary South Americans. Continue reading...
Source: theguardian.com