A population genetics view of animal domestication

The fundamental shift associated with the domestication of plants and animals allowed for a dramatic increase in human population sizes and the emergence of modern society. Despite its importance and the decades of research devoted to studying it, questions regarding the origins and processes of dom...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inTrends in genetics Vol. 29; no. 4; pp. 197 - 205
Main Authors Larson, Greger, Burger, Joachim
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2013
Subjects
Adaptation, Psychological
ancient DNA
Animals
Animals, Domestic - genetics
Biological Evolution
Breeding
domestication
Genetics, Population
Humans
introgression
Livestock - genetics
Medical Education
Plants - genetics
population genetics
population genetics
ancient DNA
introgression
domestication
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Summary:The fundamental shift associated with the domestication of plants and animals allowed for a dramatic increase in human population sizes and the emergence of modern society. Despite its importance and the decades of research devoted to studying it, questions regarding the origins and processes of domestication remain. Here, we review recent theoretical advances and present a perspective that underscores the crucial role that population admixture has played in influencing the genomes of domestic animals over the past 10 000 years. We then discuss novel approaches to generating and analysing genetic data, emphasising the importance of an explicit hypothesis-testing approach for the inference of the origins and subsequent evolution and demography of domestic animals. By applying next-generation sequencing technology alongside appropriate biostatistical methodologies, a substantially deeper understanding of domestication is on the horizon.
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ISSN:0168-9525
DOI:10.1016/j.tig.2013.01.003