The survival of biochemical information in archaeological bone

The paper gives a review of the advantages of genetic information potentially available from surviving molecules (especially proteins) in bone. Survival of such information depends on degradative processes during burial. Conventional protein chemical and immunochemical investigations on various orga...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of archaeological science 1978-12, Vol.5 (4), p.377-386
Main Authors: Hedges, R.E.M., Wallace, Carmichael J.A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amino-acids
Bone
Collagen
Genetics
Immunology
Protein
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Summary:The paper gives a review of the advantages of genetic information potentially available from surviving molecules (especially proteins) in bone. Survival of such information depends on degradative processes during burial. Conventional protein chemical and immunochemical investigations on various organic components remaining in buried archaeological bone are described. The results provide information on the chemistry of collagen degradation, and indicate that polymorphic macromolecules survive at too low a concentration to be easily detectable.
ISSN:0305-4403
1095-9238
DOI:10.1016/0305-4403(78)90057-2