RSS 1.0Kemp, Brian M.
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Kemp Lab of Molecular Anthropology and Ancient DNA
Overview
This collection features scholarly work by Brian M. Kemp, associate professor in the anthropology department at Washington State University. Dr. Brian M. Kemp is a molecular anthropologist with an expertise in the field of ancient human genetics. He earned his PhD in Anthropology in 2006 from the University of California-Davis and holds a BS degree in Anthropology/Zoology from the University of Michigan. He has been jointly appointed in the Department of Anthropology and the School of Biological Sciences at WSU since the fall of 2007.
Put broadly, the bulk of his research is focused on the analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and Y-chromosomal DNA variation in extant and prehistoric Native American populations. He uses these data to address questions about the entrance of humans into the Americas and the ensuing ~15,000 years of prehistory that are not approachable from culture history alone. In particular, he is interested in detecting parallels between the genetic and archaeological records, as signatures of past demographic shifts, population interactions, and population movements have been recorded in our genomes.
The ability to analyze DNA from ancient humans, animals, and plants (i.e. ancient DNA) opens up a tremendous potential for studying evolution. However, the potential of aDNA evidence is tempered by the challenging nature of its retrieval. In this case, another major focus of his research has been in improving methods for the recovery of genetic data from ancient remains, which has direct applicability to forensic science as well.
Most recently he has come to appreciate that one can reconstruct portions of ancient human behavior by observing the changes that humans had on the genetic composition of other species, the most common form of which is domestication. Moreover, ancient trash piles (i.e. what archaeologists refer to as middens) uncovered at archaeological sites represent treasure troves of genetic data concerning the plants and animals that were available at the time of occupation.
Recent Submissions
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How Much DNA is Lost? Measuring DNA Loss of Short-Tandem-Repeat Length Fragments Targeted by the PowerPlex 16? System Using the Qiagen MinElute Purification Kit
(Human Biology, 2014)The success in recovering genetic profiles from aged and degraded biological samples is diminished by fundamental aspects of DNA extraction, as well as its long-term preservation, that are not well understood. While numerous ... -
Patterns of Admixture and Population Structure in Native Populations of Northwest North America
(Public Library of Science, 2014)The initial contact of European populations with indigenous populations of the Americas produced diverse admixture processes across North, Central, and South America. Recent studies have examined the genetic structure of ... -
Ancient DNA analysis of mid-Holocene individuals from the Northwest Coast of North America reveals different evolutionary paths for mitogenomes
(Public Library of Science, 2013)To gain a better understanding of North American population history, complete mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) were generated from four ancient and three living individuals of the northern Northwest Coast of North ... -
New Insights from Old Collections: Cedar Mesa, Utah, Revisited
(Southwestern Lore, 2011)Basketmaker II period collections mode in the 1970s during tbe Cedar Mesa Project are being re-examined with new questions and in some cases with new analytical techniques. Included are DNA analyses of human and turkey ... -
To clone or not to clone: Method analysis for retrieving consensus sequences in ancient DNA samples
(Public Library of Science, 2011)The challenges associated with the retrieval and authentication of ancient DNA (aDNA) evidence are principally due to postmortem damage which makes ancient samples particularly prone to contamination from ‘‘modern’’ DNA ... -
Origins of southwestern domestic turkey
(4/15/2010 ) -
Letter to the Editor, Ancient DNA Methodology: Thoughts from Brian M. Kemp and David Glenn Smith on "Mitochondrial DNA of Protohistoric Remains of an Arikara Population from South Dakota"
(Human Biology, 2010)Our paper “Mitochondrial DNA of Protohistoric Remains of an Arikara Population from South Dakota: Implications for the Macro-Siouan Language Hypothesis” [Lawrence et al. 2010 (this issue)] has been reviewed by two scholars, ... -
Mitochondrial DNA of Protohistoric Remains of an Arikara Population from South Dakota (USA): Implications for the Macro-Siouan Language Hypothesis
(Human Biology, 2010)Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) was extracted from skeletal remains excavated from three Arikara sites in South Dakota occupied between AD 1600 and 1832. The diagnostic markers of four mtDNA haplogroups to which most Native ... -
Sex identification of infants sacrificed to the ancient Aztec raingods in Tlatelolco, Mexico
(Current Anthropology, 2008)Recent excavations of Temple R, dedicated to the Aztec god of wind and rain, Ehecatl-Quetzalcoatl, at the archaeological site of Tlatelolco, Mexico City, recovered the sacrificial remains of 37 subadults and 6 adults. It ... -
The Neolithic Demographic Transition in the U.S. Southwest
(American Antiquity, 2008)Maize agriculture was practiced in the U.S. Southwest slightly before 2000 B.C., but had a negligible impact on population growth rates until the development or introduction of more productive land races; the ability to ...