Complete genome of Ötzi the Iceman

It sounds like the sequencing (but not the assembly or analysis) is finished:
The most exciting part of their work is yet to come. The scientists are about to process the enormous quantity of bio-data now available to them which should contain the answers to a great many questions. Are any of Ötzi’s descendants still around today and if so, where might they be found? Can any genetic mutations be observed between earlier and present day populations? What conclusions about today’s genetic diseases and other prevalent illnesses such as diabetes or cancer can be drawn from the examination of Ötzi’s genetic make-up, and his predisposition to various types of ailments? What benefits can be derived from these findings for our own study of genetic medicine? Next year, we shall celebrate the 20th anniversary of Ötzi’s discovery. The scientists will mark this occasion by presenting their data analysis as well as the resulting conclusions.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is very interesting. I took the full mitochondrial DNA test from Family Tree DNA and the result came back as haplogroup K1. Most K1s come back in one of the "younger" subclades (K1a1a1, K1a4a1a, etc). It will be interesting for K1s to compare Ötzi's markers with their own.

Also, as far as I can tell, Ötzi's Y haplogroup hasn't yet been released. I'm guessing it's R1b.

n/a said...

The full mtDNA sequence was actually published a while back.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19545382

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18976917