3600-year-old cheese detection goat and goat DNA from the Bronze Age
Sep 26, 2024
|
According to foreign media such as the New York Post, scientists succeeded in extracting DNA from the cheese around the neck and head of the Bronze Age mummy excavated in the Tarim Basin in northwest China. The mummy was believed to have been buried 3300-3600 years ago, and the cheese found was recorded as the world's oldest cheese.
Mummies were discovered in the Taklamakan desert region of the 1930s, and dry weather and salt-containing soil in the desert were analyzed to have prevented cheese and mummies from decaying.
The ingredients in the cheese found contained both cow and goat DNA.
The research team explained "This is rare and valuable data because foods such as cheese are very difficult to preserve for thousands of years. A closer study of ancient cheese could help us better understand the diets and cultures of our human ancestors."
The team also discovered that bacteria and fungal species such as Lactobacillus kefiranophaciens and Piccia cudriabze, commonly found in kefir grains today, were included.
Kephier pellets contain several types of bacteria and yeasts and ferment milk to produce lactic acid and acetic acid.
"We will be able to observe how bacteria have evolved over the past 3000 years," the research team said, adding that "by examining dairy products in particular, we will be able to get a clearer process of ancient human life and their interactions with the world."
The findings were recently published in the journal Cell.
bellho@sportschosun.com
