The Neolithic trace in mitochondrial haplogroup U8 Joana Barbosa
Pereira 1,2 , Marta Daniela Costa 1,2 , Pedro Soares 2 , Luísa
Pereira 2,3 , Martin Brian Richards 1,4 1 Institute of
Integrative and Comparative Biology, Faculty of Biological
Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK, 2 Instituto de
Patologia e Imunologia Molecular da Universidade do Porto,
Porto, Portugal, 3 Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade do
Porto, Porto, Portugal, 4 School of Applied Sciences, University
of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK The mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA)
still remains an important marker in the study of human history,
especially if considering the increasing amount of data
available. Among the several questions regarding human history
that are under debate, the model of expansion of agriculture
into Europe from its source in the Near East is still unclear.
Recent studies have indicated that clusters belonging to
haplogroup K, a major clade from U8, might be related with the
Neolithic expansions. Therefore, it is crucial to