Indo-European and Asian origins for Chilean and Pacific chickens revealed by mtDNA

Abstract

European chickens were introduced into the American continents by the Spanish after their arrival in the 15th century. However, there is ongoing debate as to the presence of pre-Columbian chickens among Amerindians in South America, particularly in relation to Chilean breeds such as the Araucana and Passion Fowl. To understand the origin of these populations, we have generated partial mitochondrial DNA control region sequences from 41 native Chilean specimens and compared them with a previously generated database of Ϸ1,000 domestic chicken sequences from across the world as well as published Chilean and Polynesian ancient DNA sequences. The modern Chilean sequences cluster closely with haplotypes predominantly distributed among European, Indian subcontinental, and Southeast Asian chickens, consistent with a European genetic origin. A published, apparently pre-Columbian, Chilean specimen and six pre-European Polynesian specimens also cluster with the same European/Indian subcontinental/Southeast Asian sequences, providing no support for a Polynesian introduction of chickens to South America. In contrast, sequences from two archaeological sites on Easter Island group with an uncommon haplogroup from Indonesia, Japan, and China and may represent a genetic signature of an early Polynesian dispersal. Modeling of the potential marine carbon contribution to the Chilean archaeological specimen casts further doubt on claims for pre-Columbian chickens, and definitive proof will require further analyses of ancient DNA sequences and radiocarbon and stable isotope data from archaeological excavations within both Chile and Polynesia.Araucana chicken ͉ Gallus gallus ͉ pre-Columbian chicken ͉ control region

Assessing the genetic diversity of five Tanzanian chicken ecotypes using molecular tools

“…Unguja and Pemba game birds were both distributed in Liu's clade D and clade E. Oka et al (2007) and Gongora et al (2008) found Indian fighting birds in haplogroups that have been associated with Liu's clade D and fighting birds from Western Asia and Japan in Liu's clade E (Liu et al, 2006). Cockfighting was among the traditional sports in the Tanzanian islands of Unguja and Pemba, introduced by Austronesians in 945 -946 AD, as reported by Walsh (2006;.…”

Molecular dating of human-to-bovid host jumps by Staphylococcus aureus reveals an association with the spread of domestication

“…[17,18]; expansion of bovid herds throughout the Fertile Crescent (8500-9500 BP) [18,19]; and bovid introduction to Europe (5000-9000 BP) [17]. (b) First host jump from humans to avian hosts, with dashed lines representing the arrival of poultry in America (400 BP) [20]; the expansion of flocks in North America (140 BP) [21,22]; and the first factory farms (90 BP) [21]. …”

Analysis of genome-wide structure, diversity and fine mapping of Mendelian traits in traditional and village chickens

“…The earliest archaeological evidence of domestic chicken in Africa dates back to between 1300 BC and 1400 AD (Gifford-Gonzales and Hanotte, 2011). The origin of South American village chicken remains unclear with their eventual presence on the continent before the arrival of Europeans still the subject of debate (Storey et al, 2007;Gongora et al, 2008). Village chickens are typically considered as free-range panmictic birds (Dana et al, 2010a).…”