Scientists were able to reconstruct the extinct wooly rhinoceros' (Coelodonta antiquitatis) mitochondrial genome from DNA taken from cave hyena (Crocuta crocuta spelea) fossilized poop.
Wooly Rhino Genome Reconstructed
This is the first time Europe's wooly rhinos' genome was recovered. All the species' previous genomic data were taken from Siberian animals.
With this, scientists may be able to get clues regarding regional differences across rhino herbs. However, more than that, it also shows that coprolites, or fossilized poop, could be a vital resource.
The researchers note in their paper that the mitogenome assemblies that were produced serve as the European wooly rhinos' first mitogenomic records. This, thus, makes it a vital resource to resolve the Pleistocene megafauna species' phylogeography. They further note that the fact that this was relatively easily retrieved from a different species' coprolite emphasizes how genomic data can be obtained from different materials.
Coprolites: Historical Gold Mine
Fossilized feces are now turning out to become significant historical gold mines. These coprolites can reveal the diet of prehistoric animals and humans, parasites that may have infected them, and even gut microbiome changes.
Peter Andreases Seeber, a molecular biologist from the University of Konstanz, led a team to look into two fossilized poops of hyenas that date back to the Middle Paleolithic period in present-day Germany. This period was roughly 300,000 to 30,000 years ago.
Like several other coprolites, these ones were excavated and were included in collections of museums. An earlier study posited that museum collection corpolites tend to be underutilized and overlooked when it comes to looking into the biological history of the planet.
The team then used a special tool for taking material from the corpolites' insides. They then prepared the DNA for further reading and then used a DNA sequencer to run results. While the DNA was found to be degraded, the scientists were able to get genetic material from both the wooly rhino and the cave hyena. They then compared this with other ancient and modern genomes.
Though the DNA of the rhino was only taken from one sample, it still shed light on the species and its diversity across the landmass of Eurasia.
Interestingly, the difference between the rhino that became the hyena's chow and Siberian rhinos was enough to show that the two groups started diversifying a long time ago. The European rhino may have began splitting roughly 2.5 million to 150,000 years ago.
This directly contradicts the notions that rhinos repeatedly had range expansions in Western Europe in the late Pleistocene.
Further DNA recovery and analysis could shed more light on their rich history, even if these remnants are extracted from unsightly fossilized poop.
The researchers note that as for the samples, several archaeological objects taken in earlier excavations and in existing collections largely date to an overlooked ancient DNA source.
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