In a region known for hosting some of the earliest evidence of modern humans, DNA analysis was sparse. Until now.

Recent archaeological discoveries are shedding light on these ancient societies. Artefacts from graves, including precious ...

Discover the mysteries of ancient empires through palaeogenomics, revealing secrets of migration, society, and elite rulers.

This story appears in the September 2010 issue of National Geographic magazine. Mummies capture our imaginations and our hearts. Full of secrets and magic, they were once people who lived and ...

a small circular strand with about three dozen genes. Mitochondrial DNA is a remnant from the organelle’s forebears: ancient bacteria that settled inside our single-celled ancestors about 1.5 billion ...

a small circular strand with about three dozen genes. Mitochondrial DNA is a remnant from the organelle's forebears: ancient bacteria that settled inside our single-celled ancestors about 1.5 ...

As direct descendants of ancient bacteria, mitochondria have always been a little alien. Now a study shows that mitochondria ...

This juxtaposition of past and present is a fitting setting for Caramelli’s expertise in ancient DNA. Two years ago he ... relic—the artist’s bones, a strand of hair, skin cells left behind ...

These highly reactive molecules can cause a variety of lesions in DNA, including base modifications, single-strand breaks ... Consider the ancient bristlecone pine forest with its gnarled ...

a small circular strand with about three dozen genes. Mitochondrial DNA is a remnant from the organelle's forebears: ancient bacteria that settled inside our single-celled ancestors about 1.5 ...

a small circular strand with about three dozen genes. Mitochondrial DNA is a remnant from the organelle's forebears: ancient bacteria that settled inside our single-celled ancestors about 1.5 ...