Data from: Neandertal and Denisovan DNA from Pleistocene sediments

Although a rich record of Pleistocene human-associated archaeological assemblages exists, the scarcity of hominin fossils often impedes the understanding of which hominins occupied a site. Using targeted enrichment of mitochondrial DNA we show that cave sediments represent a rich source of ancient mammalian DNA that often includes traces of hominin DNA, even at sites and in layers where no hominin remains have been discovered. By automation-assisted screening of numerous sediment samples we detect Neandertal DNA in eight archaeological layers from four caves in Eurasia. In Denisova Cave we retrieved Denisovan DNA in a Middle Pleistocene layer near the bottom of the stratigraphy. Our work opens the possibility to detect the presence of hominin groups at sites and in areas where no skeletal remains are found.

尽管已积累大量与更新世人类相关的考古遗存组合，但古人类化石的稀缺性往往阻碍了我们对占据某一遗址的古人类类群的认知。本研究通过靶向富集线粒体DNA（mitochondrial DNA），证实洞穴沉积物是一类富含古代哺乳动物DNA的重要载体，其中往往包含古人类DNA的痕迹——即便在未发现古人类骨骼遗存的遗址与地层中亦是如此。通过自动化辅助筛选大量沉积物样本，我们在欧亚大陆4处洞穴的8个考古层位中检测到了尼安德特人DNA。在丹尼索瓦洞，我们在地层序列底部附近的中更新世层位中获取到了丹尼索瓦人DNA。本研究为在未发现骨骼遗存的遗址与区域中检测古人类群体的存在开辟了可行路径。