Reconstructing the human past: using ancient and modern genomics

Overview

This conference will take place at EMBL Heidelberg, with the option to attend virtually.

Registration is not yet open for this event. If you are interested in receiving more information please register your interest.

Symposium overview

Combining genome-wide data from ancient and modern populations opens new windows into the past and, importantly, their integration with archaeological evidence and historical records elucidates aspects of human history and cultural evolution of past societies. Population-scale sequencing projects investigating past and present human diversity have already provided us with extraordinary insights into patterns of human variation and mobility through time and space. Moreover, genome-wide data from archaic human remains, such as Neandertals and Denisovans, allows to investigate human evolution in action and to provide direct insights into genetic changes that define our own lineage.

The available dataset of genome-wide data from present-day and archaic humans has risen exponentially since the first EMBO ‘Reconstructing the human past’ meeting in 2019. This has drastically enhanced our ability to carry out further large-scale studies on both global and local scales across deeply sampled time transects, making it now possible to ask and answer questions that were simply impossible to address before, in addition to motivating the development of new analytical methods. Critically, with new frontiers in data generation and analyses, questions on ethical practices in paleogenomics need to be considered.

Furthermore, the reconstruction of ancient pathogen genomes and metagenomic analysis of the oral and gut microbiomes provides us with molecular fossils to study microbial evolution through time. The potential of ancient DNA data to reconstruct genomic variation of human-associated animals and plants to understand the process of domestication and their evolutionary trajectory is equally promising to such studies in humans.

This meeting will involve scientists from population genetics, bioinformatics, microbiology, anthropology, archaeology and history and will strengthen future interactions in this young research field that is already changing the way we think about our past and will shape how we study genetic variation in the future.

What past participants say about the Symposium

“The ancient DNA conference was a thought-provoking exploration of a broad range of topics. The organizers’ meticulous efforts to foster networking opportunities significantly enriched the overall experience.” – Ganyu Zhang, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China

“You’ll never see so many of the biggest names in a DNA research, all in one place together, presenting new data and new results. And to get the chance to present your own work and talk to them is an amazing opportunity!” – Adam Rohrlach, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany

“As a first time EMBL conference attendee, I found this community extremely welcoming and outstanding! The incredible research at this conference left me taking notes at each and every speaker. Hope to attend in the future!” – Lydia Sykora, University of Kansas, USA

Sponsors

Sponsorship opportunities

We offer a variety of event sponsoring possibilities, with the flexibility to select a set sponsorship package or combine individual sponsorship options to suit your event budget. Discounts are available for companies sponsoring multiple events at EMBL Heidelberg. View other conferences, or contact sponsorship@embl.de for further information.

If you are interested in becoming a media partner of this event, please visit our media partnerships webpage.

About

EMBO | EMBL Symposia promote scientific communication and collaboration in the European research area. They provide scientists with a platform to discuss and exchange ideas on forward-looking topics and new developments in the life sciences.

Topics emphasise upcoming developments and the interdisciplinary nature of related fields. Jointly funded and organised by EMBO and EMBL – and complementary to their respective courses, workshops, and conference programmes – the symposia promote scientific communication and collaboration.

All symposia are held in the EMBL Advanced Training Centre (ATC) in Heidelberg, Germany, or virtually.