PSU Ancient Biomolecules Research Environment (PSABRE)
@psu-adna.bsky.social
Located at Penn State; a @psuanthro.bsky.social and Huck Institutes research collective interested in all things #ancientDNA from microbes, humans, mammals, insects, plants, soils, parasites...
Our next Ancient DNA Journal Club is Tuesday, Sept. 22nd, from 1:30–2:30 PM ET! 🧬📚 We’ll be discussing “Crediting and citing Indigenous Knowledges within research” by Barry et al. (2026). Interested in joining the discussion? Send us a DM for the Zoom link!
Interested in ancient DNA? 🧬 Check out this series of upcoming aDNA talks happening at Penn State this fall! 🌻 Sept. 14 — Benjamin Blackman, UC Berkeley “Following the process of domestication through space and time with ancient DNA” 12:15 PM | 108 Wartik Lab www.huck.psu.edu/calendar?tru...
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Congratulations to our very own Iyunoluwa Ademola-Popoola on receiving Penn State’s 2026 Responsible and Ethical Conduct of Research Award! 🎉 The award recognizes her commitment to research ethics and integrity and her contributions to building a respectful and equitable research environment. 🧬
Ancient DNA Journal Club is back! 🧬📚 Our biweekly aDNA JC returns Sept. 8, 1:30–2:30 PM ET. We’ll discuss “Molecular Clock Dating of Ancient Environmental DNA Reveals Damage Beyond Deamination” by Lemmon-Kishi et al. (2026), bioRxiv. Interested in joining? Send us a DM for the Zoom link!
Drawing on the Ọmọlúàbí philosophy, we highlight the importance of respect, relational accountability, and co-creation of knowledge in shaping more equitable research practices.
We’re excited to share that our article has been published in American Journal of Biological Anthropology onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/.... In this paper, we propose a culturally grounded ethical framework for conducting genetics research with Indigenous& historically marginalized communities
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
The microARCH Lab and the Penn State Ancient Biomolecules Research Environment (PSABRE) in the Anthropology Department at PSU are excited to announce two new research position openings for motivated scholars eager to work at the forefront of microbial genomics, aDNA, and biomolecular anthropology
Are you involved in oral microbiome research (current or past)? Please take this anonymous survey on reporting practices in oral microbiome studies, aimed at improving consistency + reproducibility in the field. You may skip any questions. Survey link: asu.questionpro.com/t/Abm07Z7MY3 Please share!
Building Consensus on Reporting Oral Microbiome Metadata: A Community Survey
Building Consensus on Reporting Oral Microbiome Metadata: A Community Survey
asu.questionpro.com
New study highlights how wet lab protocols shape ancient oral microbiome recovery from dental calculus showing that DNA extraction & library prep choices can influence recovery, diversity, and microbial authenticity. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... Check it out today!!!!
Wet Lab Protocols Matter: Choice of DNA Extraction and Library Preparation Protocols Bias Ancient Oral Microbiome Recovery
Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis of archaeological dental calculus has provided a wealth of insights into ancient health, demography and lifestyles. However, the workflow for ancient metagenomics is still...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Another week, another episode of #MattersMicrobial podcast! This time, @lauraweyrich.bsky.social of Penn State discusses what bacterial DNA from ancient dental plaque can tell us. Please spread the #GoodMicrobialWord. @univpugetsound @asmicrobiology @microbe.tv youtu.be/6Bc5jhCDWg8?...
Matters Microbial #108: Neanderthal Oral Health, Ancient Bacteria and DNA
YouTube video by MicrobeTV
youtu.be
Checkout this recent publication on how host traits impact the success of library preparation from #dentalcalculus across mammals onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
Recent #ancientDNA publication on ancient host associated from 483 mammoth remains including unpublished samples from a 1.1 million year old steppe mammoth www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
Ancient host-associated microbes obtained from mammoth remains
A study of 483 mammoth remains spanning over a million years reveals ancient host-associated microbes preserved in bones and teeth, offering new insights into the long-term evolution of Pleistocene mi...
cell.com
Checkout this new #ancientDNA research published today on mastodons significantly revising the previous understanding of their evolutionary history!
Chris Widga@widga.bsky.social · last yr.It lives!!! 🦣🦣🦣🧪 Repeated climate-driven dispersal and speciation in peripheral populations of Pleistocene mastodons | Science Advances www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Interesting new publication using #ancientDNA from Columbian mammoth from Mexico showing they are genetically distinct from other N.American mammoths. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
Columbian mammoth mitogenomes from Mexico uncover the species’ complex evolutionary history
Paleogenomic studies suggest that Mammuthus columbi derives from an ancient hybridization between Mammuthus primigenius and Mammuthus trogontherii. While its habitat spanned from North to Central Amer...
science.org
@microarch-lab.bsky.social was lucky enough to host and work with @bbonucci.bsky.social this summer. Checkout her recent publication on retrieving #ancientDNA from concretions from human remains!
Biancamaria Bonucci@bbonucci.bsky.social · last yr.🚨Thrilled to share our new paper!! We were able to retrieve ancient DNA and proteins from layers of sediment attached to the skeletal remains of individuals from a Neolithic site from Southern Italy 💀🧬🦠 www.cell.com/iscience/ful...
Checkout a recent publication from the Huber lab using #ancientDNA to measure how migration & cultural adoption each contributed to the expansion of farming. Migration of farming groups was the dominant factor & cultural adoption by hunter-gatherers was minimal. www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Modeling the European Neolithic expansion suggests predominant within-group mating and limited cultural transmission - Nature Communications
The Neolithic Revolution marked an important shift from foraging to farming in human society. Here, the authors show that in Europe the spread of farming involved mostly within-group mating and limite...
nature.com
Are you at #WAC2025? Don’t miss Laura Weyrich’s (@lauraweyrich.bsky.social) Tuesday AM talk in Session T25/S01 – Historical Archaeology: Entanglements of Colonialism and Capitalism Across the Globe. Paper title: "Understanding How the Industrial Revolution Reshaped the Global Oral Microbiome."
Congrats to @lauraweyrich.bsky.social & the Oral Microbiome Transplant team on receiving GAP funding for: “Oral Microbiome Transplants (OMT) Therapy to Prevent Dental Decay” 🦷🦠 This work explores using helpful bacteria to reseed the mouth and reduce cavities.
We are excited to be hosting Biancamaria Bonucci, a PhD student from the University of Tartu (Estonia 🇪🇪)! She's here to expand her bioinformatics skills and collaborate on a project studying the oral microbiomes of smokers, with the goal of better understanding ancient health and lifestyle patterns
Happy to announce that our postdoc, Dr. Allison Ham will be joining Grand Valley State University as an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Sciences this fall! Here she will be teaching human gross anatomy, mentoring future health professionals, and joining an outstanding academic community.
Big congratulations to our amazing undergrad, Ava Gabrys, on completing her degree! This fall, Ava is headed to the University of Florida to begin a PhD in Biology, where she’ll be building on her work with the microARCH team to study microbial dispersal and transmission across landscapes.
Check out Christine Ta’s poster (Presentation 230) tomorrow at the Penn State Graduate Exhibition! She’ll be presenting at the HUB-Robeson Center, Alumni and Heritage Hall, from 1–4 PM. Don’t miss it!
The microARCH lab was well represented at Penn State's Eberly College of Science #ENVISION2025 outreach aimed at exposing underrepresented groups to the STEM field.
Check out our undergrad Ava Gabrys’ poster presentation (Poster No. 57) at the upcoming Penn State Undergraduate Symposium! Date: April 16th Time: 11 AM – 1 PM Location: HUB – Alumni Hall
The microARCH team showed up strong at AnthroFest! We had a great time sharing microbiome science through interactive games and conversations about why microbes matter—for our health, our history, and our future.
Great representation at the ##AABA2025
MicroARCH_lab@microarch-lab.bsky.social · 2y agoAre you heading to #AABA2025? Check out these talks and posters from MicroARCH Lab members! Iyunoluwa Ademola-Popoola – Industrialization dramatically impacts oral microbiota on a multi-continental scale Session 10 | 11:45 AM - 12:00 PM |Friday, March 14
