Optimizing utilization of DNA from rare or archival anthropological samples.

There is widespread interest in obtaining genetic samples from human populations worldwide for various studies of human genetic diversity. Many samples exist today only in the form of small, rare, irreplaceable, or archival samples, such as material from ancient bone, hair bulbs, or remnants of samples collected in the field decades ago for the purpose of protein and blood type analysis. Here, we describe the application of an approach to amplify DNA, which we call adapter attachment and amplification (AAA). This approach is useful for amplifying the genome in a reasonably representative way from small amounts of starting material using standard PCR-based methods. We apply a version of these methods to DNA extracted from washed red blood cells collected in the 1960s and 1970s in the Amazon basin. AAA and similar approaches may make the analysis of archival samples possible without exhausting that irreplaceable material and may lead to greatly improved efficiency in collecting and using new anthropological genetic samples.