Ancient DNA, Oaks, Forests, and Humans

Antoine Kremer

Published May 2024 in International Oaks No. 35: 45–58

Abstract

Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis involves studying DNA extracted from ancient biological remains, primarily wood in the case of trees. Abundant subfossil oak wood logs and archaeological timber from temperate Europe, including specimens with exceptionally well- preserved morphological features, offer unique insights into the evolutionary history of oaks, forests, and humans. This review highlights the enhanced value that aDNA brings to evolutionary inferences and the results obtained from genetic analyses conducted on modern populations. First addressing the technical challenges, constraints, and limitations associated with aDNA analysis of oaks, it then underlines the questions than can be addressed with this approach and offers some preliminary answers obtained from recent studies on European White Oaks. Species diagnostic marker analysis can be applied to aDNA for the taxonomic classification of fossil or archaeological remains, overcoming limitations associated with wood anatomical features. Organelle aDNA can serve as a unique tool to elucidate the origin of founder populations and refine the picture of the temporal dynamics of past colonization. Nuclear genomes can retrace genetic exchanges between species, providing historical support for admixture in most modern oak forests, as well as for succession scenarios. Coupled with current genome-wide association studies in modern experimental populations, ancient genome analysis enables the reconstruction of ancient phenotypes and the assessment of temporal evolutionary changes in fitness-related traits. Origins of silviculture can also be addressed by exploring footprints in population-scale data of aDNA. Finally, genome-wide data retrieved from aDNA can provide unique insights into the spatio-temporal variation of genetic diversity during and after the establishment of populations. This comprehensive overview of feasible applications of aDNA analysis in the evolutionary biology of oaks opens new perspectives in broader research fields, including history, archaeology, dendroecology, and dendroclimatology.

Keywords

microevolution, Quercus, taxonomic assignment, admixture, colonization, genetic diversity, archaeology

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