Sex selection in late Iberian infant burials: Integrating evidence from morphological and genetic data

Afonso, C.; Nociarová, Dominika; Santos, Cristina; Martínez-Labarga, Cristina; Mestres, Imma; Durán, Montserrat; Malgosa, Assumpció

doi:10.1002/ajhb.23204

Cited by 9 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…The advent of DNA sequencing made it possible to use skeletal remains to estimate the sex of very young individuals; it also expanded sex estimations for fragmentary, pathological, and degraded skeletal materials 19 – 21 . More recently, development of massively parallel DNA sequencing greatly improved genome coverage in archaeological samples 22 – 25 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparison of proteomic, genomic, and osteological methods of archaeological sex estimation

Buonasera

Eerkens

Flamingh

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Sex estimation of skeletons is fundamental to many archaeological studies. currently, three approaches are available to estimate sex-osteology, genomics, or proteomics, but little is known about the relative reliability of these methods in applied settings. We present matching osteological, shotgun-genomic, and proteomic data to estimate the sex of 55 individuals, each with an independent radiocarbon date between 2,440 and 100 cal BP, from two ancestral Ohlone sites in Central California. Sex estimation was possible in 100% of this burial sample using proteomics, in 91% using genomics, and in 51% using osteology. Agreement between the methods was high, however conflicts did occur. Genomic sex estimates were 100% consistent with proteomic and osteological estimates when DNA reads were above 100,000 total sequences. However, more than half the samples had DNA read numbers below this threshold, producing high rates of conflict with osteological and proteomic data where nine out of twenty conditional DNA sex estimates conflicted with proteomics. While the DNA signal decreased by an order of magnitude in the older burial samples, there was no decrease in proteomic signal. We conclude that proteomics provides an important complement to osteological and shotgun-genomic sex estimation. Biological sex plays an important role in the human experience, correlating to lifespan, reproduction, and a wide range of other biological factors 1-5. Sex and gender are also fundamental in structuring an array of cultural behaviors, including residence patterns, kinship, economic roles, and identity construction and expression 6-9. How sex interacts with gender and these particular issues is not static and can vary in detail across societies and over time 10-12. It is not surprising that sex is one of the most basic and important measures in bioarchaeological and forensic analyses. Typically, osteological features are used to estimate sex of skeletal remains, and the most widely used marker is the morphology of the os coxae 13-16. However, appropriate markers are not always sufficiently expressed or preserved to estimate sex using morphological criteria 17. A lack of sexually-dimorphic markers is especially acute for skeletons of infants and children who have not undergone puberty. Mortuary practices, such as cremation or secondary burial in charnel houses, can also can impose limitations on the utility of osteological sex estimates 18. The advent of DNA sequencing made it possible to use skeletal remains to estimate the sex of very young individuals; it also expanded sex estimations for fragmentary, pathological, and degraded skeletal materials 19-21. More recently, development of massively parallel DNA sequencing greatly improved genome coverage in archaeological samples 22-25. In addition to providing detailed genetic information, this allows biological sex to be estimated from shotgun sequencing data 25-27. These approaches were an improvement over earlier PCR-based marker

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparison of proteomic, genomic, and osteological methods of archaeological sex estimation

Buonasera

Eerkens

Flamingh

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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“…The higher mortality rate of males has been accounted for by genetic and biological differences that produce a lower susceptibility for females to certain diseases that can be fatal at young ages, which seems to be a universal and timeless phenomenon (Pongou, 2013;Waldron, 1983;WHO, 2019). As argued in other cases (Afonso et al, 2019), in the absence of selection or sexual discrimination, there should be more male perinatal individuals than females in a context of natural mortality. Although our sample size is limited and we are unable to estimate reliable sex frequencies, the larger proportion of males (75%) observed at Cendro is in agreement a scenario of high perinatal mortality.…”

Section: Female Infanticidementioning

confidence: 84%

Perinatal burials at pre‐Hispanic noncemetery sites in Gran Canaria: Tophet, infanticide, or natural mortality?

Barroso¹,

Delgado-Darias

Ordóñez

et al. 2021

Intl J of Osteoarchaeology

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In this paper, we perform the first multidisciplinary study of perinatal burials at a pre-Hispanic domestic site in Gran Canaria. For that, we carried out bioanthropological analyses, the genetic determination of the molecular sex of the individuals, and the contextualization of their chronological and cultural affiliations. To date, these remains had been associated to a local re-interpretation of a Phoenician-Punic tophet or as evidence of female infanticide within the mechanisms of demographic control of the ancient Canarians. However, these proposals did not take into account the recurrence of this type of human remains outside the normative cemeteries of the indigenous population or considered the demographic profile of coetaneous necropolises. In the light of the age of death and the molecular sex of the individuals, and the results obtained from the taphonomic and chronological analyses, we propose an alternative historical scenario, directly linked to high perinatal mortality rates and the development of specific burial practices for those individuals that died around the time of birth.

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“…Molecular biology and genetics can use aDNA at the individual level to identify the biological sex of a skeleton, make phenotypic inferences from an individual's genotype, and identify specific pathogens within an infected individual [27]. Molecular biology techniques are increasingly used to identify the sex of skeletal remains when traditional anthropometric analyses do not successfully identify the sex of remains that are incomplete, fragmented, and/or refer to immature individuals [28][29][30]. As Raff [27] reports, aDNA research cannot be done in regular molecular biology laboratories.…”

Section: Genetic Estimation Of Sexmentioning

confidence: 99%

Peptide analysis of tooth enamel – A sex estimation tool for archaeological, anthropological, or forensic research

Mikšı́k

Morvan

Brůžek

2023

J of Separation Science

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Proteomics has become an attractive method to study human and animal material, biological profile, and origin as an alternative to DNA analysis. It is limited by DNA amplification in ancient samples and its contamination, high cost, and limited preservation of nuclear DNA. Currently, three approaches are available to estimate sex–osteology, genomics, or proteomics, but little is known about the relative reliability of these methods in applied settings. Proteomics provides a new, seemingly simple, and relatively non‐expensive way of sex estimation without the risk of contamination. Proteins can be preserved in hard teeth tissue (enamel) for tens of thousands of years. It uses two sexually distinct forms of the protein amelogenin in tooth enamel detectable by liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry; the protein amelogenin Y isoform is present in enamel dental tissue only in males, while amelogenin isoform X can be found in both sexes. From the point of view of archaeological, anthropological, and forensic research and applications, the reduced destruction of the methods used is essential, as well as the minimum requirements for sample size.

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Sex selection in late Iberian infant burials: Integrating evidence from morphological and genetic data

Cited by 9 publications

References 31 publications

A comparison of proteomic, genomic, and osteological methods of archaeological sex estimation

A comparison of proteomic, genomic, and osteological methods of archaeological sex estimation

Perinatal burials at pre‐Hispanic noncemetery sites in Gran Canaria: Tophet, infanticide, or natural mortality?

Peptide analysis of tooth enamel – A sex estimation tool for archaeological, anthropological, or forensic research

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