High mitochondrial diversity of domesticated goats persisted among Bronze and Iron Age pastoralists in the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor

Abstract

Analyses of ancient goat mitochondrial DNA (hypervariable region 1 and cytochrome b) from Bronze and Iron Age archaeological sites reveal unexpectedly high mtDNA diversity in the Inner Asian Mountain Corridor (IAMC), including common A lineages and rarer C and D lineages. In contrast, the Northern Eurasian Steppe (NES) exhibits predominantly A lineages with low diversity. Central Kazakhstan shows intermediate diversity. These patterns suggest that mountainous pastoralist communities maintained genetically diverse goat populations through sustained interaction and livestock exchange, likely drawing broader maternal lineages from the Iranian Plateau, in contrast to more isolated NES populations.,