Browsing by Author "Paladugu, Roshan"
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- Species identification of osseous museum artefacts through peptide mass fingerprinting illustrated by a study on objects from Neolithic to Iron Age ArmeniaPublication . Antonosyan, Mariya; Mkrtchyan, Satenik; Amano, Noel; Davtyan, Ruben; Yeranyan, Nzhdeh; Badalyan, Mikayel; Poghosyan, Svetlana; Telunts, Anahit; Stepanyan, Karine; Amiryan, Mariam; Zakyan, Tigran; Eloshvili, Mariami; Zarikian, Noushig; Adigyozalyan, Ani; Gyonjyan, Andranik; Simonyan, Hasmik; Sargsyan, Vahe; Saribekyan, Mariam; Hovhannisyan, Anahit; Simonyan, Hakob; Martirosyan-Olshansky, Kristine; Piliposyan, Ashot; Khachatryan, Zaruhi; Sousa Almeida Évora, Glória Marina; Paladugu, Roshan; Bobokhyan, Arsen; Roberts, Patrick; Yepiskoposyan, LevonIdentifying animal species used in osseous industry production is crucial for reconstructing human-animal interactions in ancient societies. However, bone artefact manufacture often involves intensive modifications to raw materials that hamper taxonomic identifications. Here, for the first time in central Eurasia, we taxonomically assess bone objects stored in museum collections, recovered from Late Neolithic to Iron Age contexts in Armenia, using a minimally invasive peptide mass fingerprinting technique, also known as Zooarchaeology by Mass Spectrometry (ZooMS). Our pilot study shows remarkable collagen preservation in the bone artefacts, demonstrating the rich potential of ZooMS for examining legacy collections. The successful ZooMS screening provided taxonomic identification for 86% of the artefacts, offering insights into species selection for bone manufacturing, as well as broader socioeconomic developments and interregional links. Our study underscores the utility of minimally invasive proteomic techniques, enabling the preservation of cultural and historical artefacts while addressing limitations of studying museum collections.
- Your horse is a donkey! Identifying domesticated equids from Western Iberia using collagen fingerprintingPublication . Paladugu, Roshan; Richter, Kristine Korzow; Valente, Maria João; Gabriel, Sónia; Detry, Cleia; Warinner, Christina; Dias, Cristina BarrocasSkeletal remains of two equid species, Equus caballus (horse) and Equus asinus (donkey), have been found in archaeological contexts throughout Iberia since the Palaeolithic and Chalcolithic periods, respectively. These two species play different economic and cultural roles, and therefore it is important to be able to distinguish between the two species to better understand their relative importance in the past human societies. The most reliable morphological features for distinguishing between the two domesticated equids are based on cranial measure-ments and tooth enamel folds, leading to only a small percentage of archaeological remains that can be identified to species. Ancient DNA (aDNA) analysis can be used to reliably distinguish the two equids, but it can be cost prohibitive to apply to large assemblages, and aDNA preservation of non-cranial elements is often low. Collagen peptide mass fingerprinting by matrix-assisted laser desorption time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry, also known as zooarchaeology by mass spectrometry (ZooMS), is a minimally destructive and cost-effective alternative to aDNA analysis for taxonomic determination. However, current ZooMS markers lack resolution below the genus level Equus. In this paper, we report a novel ZooMS peptide marker that reliably distinguishes between horses and donkeys using the enzyme chymotrypsin. We apply this peptide marker to taxonomically identify bones from the Iberian Peninsula ranging from the Iron Age to the Late Modern Period. The peptide biomarker has the potential to facilitate the collection of morphological data for zooarchaeological studies of equids in Iberia and throughout Eurasia and Africa.