Research Topics
| Eske WillerslevSummaryAffiliation: University of Copenhagen Country: Denmark Publications
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Detail Information
Publications
Barking up the wrong tree: modern northern European dogs fail to explain their originHelena Malmström
Department of Evolutionary Biology, Uppsala University, SE 752 36 Uppsala, Sweden
BMC Evol Biol 8:71. 2008..This has been suggested to indicate a possible origin of the haplogroup (perhaps even a separate domestication) in central or northern Europe...- Ancient biomolecules from deep ice cores reveal a forested southern GreenlandEske Willerslev
Centre for Ancient Genetics, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 317:111-4. 2007..The results provide direct evidence in support of a forested southern Greenland and suggest that many deep ice cores may contain genetic records of paleoenvironments in their basal sections... 
Evolution. The origin of insectsHenrik Glenner
Centre for Ancient Genetics, Department of Evolutionary Biology, Biological Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 314:1883-4. 2006- Detection of a diverse marine fish fauna using environmental DNA from seawater samplesPhilip Francis Thomsen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade, Copenhagen, Denmark
PLoS ONE 7:e41732. 2012..Although further studies are needed to validate the eDNA approach in varying environmental conditions, our findings provide a strong proof-of-concept with great perspectives for future monitoring of marine biodiversity and resources... - Analysis of complete mitochondrial genomes from extinct and extant rhinoceroses reveals lack of phylogenetic resolutionEske Willerslev
Centre for Ancient Genetics, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100, Denmark
BMC Evol Biol 9:95. 2009..One notable example concerns the rhinoceroses, a group for which several contradictory phylogenies were proposed on the basis of morphology, then apparently resolved using mitochondrial DNA fragments... 
Ancient human genome sequence of an extinct Palaeo-EskimoMorten Rasmussen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark and Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Nature 463:757-62. 2010..This provides evidence for a migration from Siberia into the New World some 5,500 years ago, independent of that giving rise to the modern Native Americans and Inuit...- A comparative study of ancient sedimentary DNA, pollen and macrofossils from permafrost sediments of northern Siberia reveals long-term vegetational stabilityTina Jørgensen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Ecol 21:1989-2003. 2012.... - Ancient DNA sequences point to a large loss of mitochondrial genetic diversity in the saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica) since the PleistocenePaula F Campos
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Ecol 19:4863-75. 2010..66-77%) following either a demographic bottleneck in the course of the Holocene or late Pleistocene, or a geographic fragmentation (followed by local extinction of one subpopulation) at the Holocene/Pleistocene transition... - Paleo-Eskimo mtDNA genome reveals matrilineal discontinuity in GreenlandM Thomas P Gilbert
Center for Ancient Genetics, Department of Biology, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 320:1787-9. 2008..This result suggests that the earliest migrants into the New World's northern extremes derived from populations in the Bering Sea area and were not directly related to Native Americans or the later Neo-Eskimos that replaced them... - Species-specific responses of Late Quaternary megafauna to climate and humansEline D Lorenzen
Centre for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, DK 1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark
Nature 479:359-64. 2011.... - Ancient DNA analyses exclude humans as the driving force behind late Pleistocene musk ox (Ovibos moschatus) population dynamicsPaula F Campos
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, DK 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 107:5675-80. 2010.... - Monitoring endangered freshwater biodiversity using environmental DNAPhilip Francis Thomsen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, DK 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Ecol 21:2565-73. 2012..Our findings underpin the ubiquitous nature of DNA traces in the environment and establish environmental DNA as a tool for monitoring rare and threatened species across a wide range of taxonomic groups... - Meta-barcoding of 'dirt' DNA from soil reflects vertebrate biodiversityKenneth Andersen
Centre for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Ecol 21:1966-79. 2012.... - Islands in the ice: detecting past vegetation on Greenlandic nunataks using historical records and sedimentary ancient DNA meta-barcodingTina Jørgensen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Ecol 21:1980-8. 2012..This suggests that even the flora of fairly small and isolated ice-free areas reacts quickly to a changing climate... - DNA from keratinous tissue. Part I: hair and nailCamilla Friis Bengtsson
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Ann Anat 194:17-25. 2012.... - Intraspecific phylogenetic analysis of Siberian woolly mammoths using complete mitochondrial genomesM Thomas P Gilbert
Centre for Ancient Genetics, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 105:8327-32. 2008..Modeling of protein structures failed to indicate any important functional difference between genomes belonging to the two clades, suggesting that the loss of clade II more likely is due to genetic drift than a selective sweep... - DNA in ancient bone - where is it located and how should we extract it?Paula F Campos
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Ann Anat 194:7-16. 2012..In doing so we offer hypotheses relevant to the DNA degradation process itself, and to where and how the DNA is actually preserved in ancient bone... - The use of coded PCR primers enables high-throughput sequencing of multiple homolog amplification products by 454 parallel sequencingJonas Binladen
Center for Ancient Genetics, Institute of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
PLoS ONE 2:e197. 2007.... - Non-destructive sampling of ancient insect DNAPhilip Francis Thomsen
Centre for Ancient Genetics and Environments, Natural History Museum and Institute of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
PLoS ONE 4:e5048. 2009..Finally, we test the possibility of obtaining ancient insect DNA directly from non-frozen sediments deposited 3280-1800 years ago -- an alternative approach that also does not involve destruction of valuable material... - Evaluating Neanderthal genetics and phylogenyMartin B Hebsgaard
Centre for Ancient Genetics, Niels Bohr Institute and Biological Institute, University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries Vej 30, Copenhagen DK 2100, Denmark
J Mol Evol 64:50-60. 2007.... - 800,000 year old mammoth DNA, modern elephant DNA or PCR artefact?Jonas Binladen
Centre for Ancient Genetics, Niels Bohr Institute and Biological Institute, University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries Vej 30, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Biol Lett 3:55-6; discussion 60-3. 2007..Finally, we demonstrate using a simple BLAST search in GenBank that the claimed 'uniquely derived character state' for mammoths is in fact also found within modern elephants... - Diverse plant and animal genetic records from Holocene and Pleistocene sedimentsEske Willerslev
Department of Evolutionary Biology, Zoological Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, Denmark DK-2100
Science 300:791-5. 2003..Therefore, many sedimentary deposits may contain unique, and widespread, genetic records of paleoenvironments... - Assessing the fidelity of ancient DNA sequences amplified from nuclear genesJonas Binladen
Ancient DNA and Evolution Group, Centre for Ancient Genetics, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Genetics 172:733-41. 2006.... - Out of the Pacific and back again: insights into the matrilineal history of Pacific killer whale ecotypesAndrew D Foote
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
PLoS ONE 6:e24980. 2011.... - The last Viking King: a royal maternity case solved by ancient DNA analysisJørgen Dissing
Research Laboratory, Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Frederik V Vej 11, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Forensic Sci Int 166:21-7. 2007..Although the entombed woman cannot be the Estrid, she may well be one of Sven's two daughters-in-law who were also called Estrid and who both became queens... - Ancient DNA reveals late survival of mammoth and horse in interior AlaskaJames Haile
Centre for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen 2100, Denmark
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 106:22352-7. 2009.... - DNA from pre-Clovis human coprolites in Oregon, North AmericaM Thomas P Gilbert
Centre for Ancient Genetics, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 320:786-9. 2008..The mtDNA corresponds to Native American founding haplogroups A2 and B2. The dates of the coprolites are >1000 14C years earlier than currently accepted dates for the Clovis complex... - Improving ancient DNA read mapping against modern reference genomesMikkel Schubert
Centre for GeoGenetics Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, 5 7 Øster Voldgade, 1350, Kobenhavns K, Denmark
BMC Genomics 13:178. 2012.... - Next-generation sequencing offers new insights into DNA degradationSøren Overballe-Petersen
Centre for GeoGenetics, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, 1350 Copenhagen K, Denmark
Trends Biotechnol 30:364-8. 2012..In this review, we argue that the latter results from an electron resonance structure unique to guanosine rather than adenosine having an extra resonance structure over guanosine as previously suggested... - Whole-genome shotgun sequencing of mitochondria from ancient hair shaftsM Thomas P Gilbert
Centre for Ancient Genetics, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 317:1927-30. 2007..The method therefore sets the stage for molecular-genetic analysis of museum collections... - Bayesian inference of the metazoan phylogeny; a combined molecular and morphological approachHenrik Glenner
Department of Evolutionary Biology, Biological Institute, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Curr Biol 14:1644-9. 2004..Parsimony, on the contrary, shows conflicting results, with morphology being congruent to the Bayesian results and the molecular data set producing peculiarities that are largely reflected in the combined analysis... - Proteomic analysis of a pleistocene mammoth femur reveals more than one hundred ancient bone proteinsEnrico Cappellini
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, 1350, Copenhagen, Denmark
J Proteome Res 11:917-26. 2012..This approach therefore represents a further step into the ongoing integration of different high-throughput technologies for identification of ancient biomolecules, unleashing the field of paleoproteomics... - Statistical guidelines for detecting past population shifts using ancient DNATobias Mourier
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Biol Evol 29:2241-51. 2012..In addition, our results suggest that many ancient DNA studies may face power issues in detecting moderate demographic collapses and/or highly dynamic demographic shifts when based solely on mitochondrial information... - Screening mammal biodiversity using DNA from leechesIda Bærholm Schnell
Copenhagen Zoo, Frederiksberg, 2000, Denmark Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, 1350, Denmark
Curr Biol 22:R262-3. 2012..We propose that DNA from leeches represents a quick, cost-effective and standardised way to obtain basic data on mammalian biodiversity and species occupancy, facilitating efficient use of limited conservation resources... - DNA from keratinous tissue. Part II: featherMaia E Olsen
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Ann Anat 194:31-5. 2012..However, PCR-free genetic analyses that can exploit much smaller DNA fragments may promise to be a powerful tool for future exploitation... - Positive selection on the killer whale mitogenomeAndrew D Foote
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Volgade 5 7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
Biol Lett 7:116-8. 2011..Both substitutions were associated with changes in local polarity, increased steric constraints and α-helical tendencies that could influence overall metabolic performance, suggesting a functional change... - Mitogenomic phylogenetic analyses of the Delphinidae with an emphasis on the GlobicephalinaeJulia T Vilstrup
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
BMC Evol Biol 11:65. 2011..Further ad hoc tests were then conducted to estimate the support for alternative topologies... - Large-scale transcriptome data reveals transcriptional activity of fission yeast LTR retrotransposonsTobias Mourier
Ancient DNA and Evolution Group, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Øster Voldgade 5 7, DK 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark
BMC Genomics 11:167. 2010..pombe exist as solitary LTRs, i.e. as single terminal repeat sequences not flanking a retrotransposon. Transcriptional activity was analysed for both full-length LTR retrotransposons and solitary LTRs... - Does selection against transcriptional interference shape retroelement-free regions in mammalian genomes?Tobias Mourier
Ancient DNA and Evolution Group, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
PLoS ONE 3:e3760. 2008..We speculate that such retroelement transcription, or transcriptional interference, is a contributing factor in generating and maintaining retroelement-free regions in the human genome... - mtDNA analysis of human remains from an early Danish Christian cemeteryLars Rudbeck
Research Laboratory, Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Copenhagen, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Am J Phys Anthropol 128:424-9. 2005.... - 5'-tailed sequencing primers improve sequencing quality of PCR productsJonas Binladen
University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Biotechniques 42:174, 176. 2007 - Retrotransposons and non-protein coding RNAsTobias Mourier
Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 15, DK 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Brief Funct Genomic Proteomic 8:493-501. 2009..Finally, we review the emerging understanding of how retrotransposons themselves are regulated by small RNAs... - One hundred twenty years of koala retrovirus evolution determined from museum skinsMaria C Avila-Arcos
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum of Denmark, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Biol Evol 30:299-304. 2013..Given that museum and modern koalas share nearly identical KoRV sequences, it is likely that koala populations, for more than a century, have experienced increased susceptibility to diseases caused by viral pathogenesis... - Aerial photographs reveal late-20th-century dynamic ice loss in northwestern GreenlandKurt H Kjær
Centre for GeoGenetics, Natural History Museum, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Science 337:569-73. 2012..This finding challenges predictions about the future response of the Greenland Ice Sheet to increasing global temperatures... - Rise and fall of the Beringian steppe bisonBeth Shapiro
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Oxford University, South Parks Road, Oxford OX13PS, UK
Science 306:1561-5. 2004.... - Distribution patterns of postmortem damage in human mitochondrial DNAM Thomas P Gilbert
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom
Am J Hum Genet 72:32-47. 2003..Finally, a simple method for the identification of incorrect archaeological haplogroup designations is introduced, on the basis of the observed spectrum of postmortem damage... - Extreme reversed sexual size dimorphism in the extinct New Zealand moa DinornisMichael Bunce
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK
Nature 425:172-5. 2003..The combination of molecular and palaeontological data highlights the difficulties of analysing extinct groups, even those with detailed fossil records... - Worldwide phylogeography of wild boar reveals multiple centers of pig domesticationGreger Larson
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, University of Oxford, Department of Zoology, South Parks Road OX1 3PS, UK
Science 307:1618-21. 2005..In contrast, new genetic data reveal multiple centers of domestication across Eurasia and that European, rather than Near Eastern, wild boar are the principal source of modern European domestic pigs... - Ancient DNAEske Willerslev
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK
Proc Biol Sci 272:3-16. 2005.... - Evolution, systematics, and phylogeography of pleistocene horses in the new world: a molecular perspectiveJaco Weinstock
Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
PLoS Biol 3:e241. 2005..Both caballine and stilt-legged lineages may each have comprised a single, wide-ranging species... - The genetic origins of the Andaman IslandersPhillip Endicott
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PS England
Am J Hum Genet 72:178-84. 2003..The results demonstrate that Victorian anthropological collections can be used to study extinct, or seriously admixed populations, to provide new data about early human origins... - Ancient DNA chronology within sediment deposits: are paleobiological reconstructions possible and is DNA leaching a factor?James Haile
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, United Kingdom
Mol Biol Evol 24:982-9. 2007..Our study indicates that DNA from sediments can still offer a rich source of information on past environments, provided that the risk from vertical migration can be controlled for... - Authenticity in ancient DNA studiesM Thomas P Gilbert
Center for Ancient Genetics, Niels Bohr and Biological Institutes, University of Copenhagen
Med Secoli 18:701-23. 2006..In this paper we outline first the problems associated with aDNA studies, and secondly present potential guidelines designed so as to enable non-specialist readers the opportunity to critically assess the quality of aDNA publications... - More on contamination: the use of asymmetric molecular behavior to identify authentic ancient human DNAHelena Malmström
Evolutionary Biology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
Mol Biol Evol 24:998-1004. 2007..This asymmetrical behavior of authentic and contaminant DNA can be used to identify authentic haplotypes in human aDNA studies... - Profile: Eske Willerslev. Ancient DNA's intrepid explorerAndrew Curry
Science 317:36-7. 2007 - The effect of ancient DNA damage on inferences of demographic historiesErik Axelsson
Department of Biology, Evolutionary Biology, Copenhagen University, Copenhagen, Denmark
Mol Biol Evol 25:2181-7. 2008..Our results suggest that population genetic analyses of aDNA sequences, which do not accurately account for damage, should be interpreted with great caution... - Ancient DNA: would the real Neandertal please stand up?Alan Cooper
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre and Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX1 3PS, UK
Curr Biol 14:R431-3. 2004..This indicates that, if Neandertals made any genetic contribution at all to modern humans, it must have been limited, though the extent of the contribution cannot be resolved at present... - Ancient mitochondrial DNA from hairM Thomas P Gilbert
Curr Biol 14:R463-4. 2004 - Beringian paleoecology inferred from permafrost-preserved fungal DNAMagnus C Lydolph
Microbial Discovery, Novozymes A S, Smørmosevej 25 1B1, DK 2880 Bagsvaerd, Denmark
Appl Environ Microbiol 71:1012-7. 2005.... - Characterization of genetic miscoding lesions caused by postmortem damageM Thomas P Gilbert
Henry Wellcome Ancient Biomolecules Centre, Department of Zoology, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom
Am J Hum Genet 72:48-61. 2003..Last, a significant correlation between archaeological site and sample-specific level of DNA damage was detected... - Damage and repair of ancient DNADavid Mitchell
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Department of Carcinogenesis, P O Box 389, Park Road 1C, Smithville, TX 78957, USA
Mutat Res 571:265-76. 2005..In addition, we will present some of our own preliminary and published data on mechanisms of DNA degradation and some speculative thoughts on strategies for repair and restoration of aDNA... - A preliminary analysis of the DNA and diet of the extinct Beothuk: a systematic approach to ancient human DNAMelanie Kuch
McMaster Ancient DNA Center, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON L8S 4L9, Canada
Am J Phys Anthropol 132:594-604. 2007.... - Geologically ancient DNA: fact or artefact?Martin B Hebsgaard
Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, UK OX1 3PS
Trends Microbiol 13:212-20. 2005..To enhance the credibility of future studies and assist in discarding false-positive results, we propose a rigorous set of authentication criteria for work with geologically ancient DNA... - Rescuing ancient DNAM Thomas P Gilbert
Nat Biotechnol 25:872-4. 2007 - Crosslinks rather than strand breaks determine access to ancient DNA sequences from frozen sedimentsAnders J Hansen
Genetics 173:1175-9. 2006..Additionally, a clear relationship was found between DNA damage and sample age, contradicting previously raised concerns about the possible leaching of free DNA molecules between permafrost layers... - Nuclear gene indicates coat-color polymorphism in mammothsHolger Römpler
Molecular Biochemistry, Institute of Biochemistry, Medical Faculty, University of Leipzig, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
Science 313:62. 2006..This finding suggests that mammoths may have been polymorphic in coat color, with both dark- and light-haired individuals co-occurring... - Recharacterization of ancient DNA miscoding lesions: insights in the era of sequencing-by-synthesisM Thomas P Gilbert
Center for Ancient Genetics, Niels Bohr Institute and Biological Institutes, The University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries Vej 30, DK 2100 Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
Nucleic Acids Res 35:1-10. 2007..How widespread these implications are for aDNA will become apparent as future studies analyse data recovered from a wider range of substrates... - Power and limitations of the chloroplast trnL (UAA) intron for plant DNA barcodingPierre Taberlet
Laboratoire d Ecologie Alpine, CNRS UMR 5553, Universite Joseph Fourier, BP 53, 38041 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
Nucleic Acids Res 35:e14. 2007.... - Can identification of a fourth domain of life be made from sequence data alone, and could it be done on Mars?Anthony M Poole
Department of Molecular Biology and Functional Genomics, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
Astrobiology 7:801-14. 2007....