ESR 3: Ancient DNA analysis of tars and resins associated with artefacts (Copenhagen/York)
Anna White
I’m a biologist from the Netherlands and the UK. I have a BSc in Biology from Utrecht University, including an exchange semester at the University of California, Santa Cruz. I’ve completed my MSc in Evolutionary Biology at Leiden University, with research projects in population genetics and ancient DNA analysis.
My PhD Project
My PhD project focusses on the analysis of ancient DNA from birch pitch samples. Used as an adhesive, pieces of birch pitch are often found with tooth imprints which suggests that they were chewed. These ancient ‘chewing gums’ contain human DNA and DNA from the oral microbiome of the person that chewed them. By studying this DNA, we are able to obtain snapshots of the human oral microbiome from different time points. This is a unique opportunity that promises new insights into the ecology and evolution of the human oral microbiome.
CV
MSc Evolutionary Biology at Leiden University (2019-2021)
MSc research project at the Insitut de Biologia Evolutiva in Barcelona, Spain, part of the Paleogenomics group under supervision of Prof. dr. Carles Lalueza-Fox
BSc Biology at Utrecht University (2015-2018)
Exchange at the University of California, Santa Cruz
Publications
White AE, de-Dios T, Carrión P, Bonora GL, Llovera L, Cilli E, Lizano E, Khabdulina MK, Tleugabulov DT, Olalde I, Marquès-Bonet T, Balloux F, Pettener D, van Dorp L, Luiselli D, Lalueza-Fox C. Genomic Analysis of 18th-Century Kazakh Individuals and Their Oral Microbiome. Biology. 2021; 10(12):1324. https://doi.org/10.3390/biology10121324
Supervisor
Hannes Schroeder (UCPH)
Co-supervisor
Nathan Wales (UoY)