KATHMANDU, MARCH 19An archeological study conducted by a team of international scientists has identified tantalizing clues about early malaria in Nepal and the role that long-distance trade may have played in its spread."The team used a metagenomic approach to identify ancient DNA from malaria parasites preserved in human skeletal remains to explore the history of this disease," the study said, adding that the team presented the earliest identified case of P.

falciparum malaria in an individual from the high-altitude site of Chokhopani in Upper Mustang, dating to c.

804-765 calBCE."This site lies above the endemic range of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes in Nepal today, suggesting that the individual from Chokhopani may have acquired their infection during travel in lowland regions," the study revealed, "As such, this represents a rare case-study in which infectious disease status sheds light on both individual mobility and trans-altitudinal connectivity in the Himalayas." For the past 12 years, an international team of scientists, led by Dr Mark Aldenderfer (University of California, Merced) and Dr Christina Warinner (Harvard University), has applied cutting-edge techniques in the Upper Mustang, with the goal of understanding the lives of the first people to settle the High Himalayas more than 3,400 years ago and to reconstruct the trade routes they controlled for nearly three millennia.According to Mark, recent advances in the biological sciences are opening up dramatic new opportunities to study the human past.

"Drawing on decades of archaeological fieldwork, our team used ancient DNA technologies to sequence the genomes and reconstruct the origin of early people in the High Himalayas and neighboring Tibetan Plateau," he said, adding that they also studied genetic adaptations found in ancient and present-day Himalayan populations that help people live above 4,000 meters above sea level. According to Mark, located some 4000 meters above sea level, in the Kali Gandaki river valley of the Upper Mustang region, lies the sky cave of Samdzong.

Archeological excavations conducted, between 2010 and 2012, revealed several tombs, among which the tomb 5, which contained human remains and cultural artifacts associated with food and beverage production.Among these artifacts, copper vessels, dated to the 6-7th century CE, are thought to be associated with the brewing and consumption of chhaang, a typical Tibetan barley wine.

"After conducting DNA extraction in a dedicated ancient DNA cleanroom facility, we shotgun and target captured and sequenced these samples, to check both for plant and microbiome composition," the scientist said, adding, "The microbial signal present in these samples revealed an assortment of microbes associated with alcoholic fermentation, while the plant DNA matched with barley reference genomes.

Taken together, these findings suggest the production of chaang in the Upper Mustang region in the early 7th century CE."According to the study, the team used a new technique called metagenomics to investigate residues found at the bottom of a 1,600-year-old copper cauldron and identified that it once contained chaang – making it the earliest chaang found to date. "We introduced three paleogenomics projects our team is conducting in Nepal and explained how ancient DNA can be used answer key questions about life in ancient Nepal - including how and when ancient peoples first settled the high Himalayan valleys, the antiquity of malaria and its spread by trade, and the ancient art of brewing chaang," Christina informed.Over the course of the project, the team has also excavated and conducted research at seven archaeological sites in Mustang and neighboring Manang.

"Based on this research, we now know that people entered Mustang by 1500 BCE, and through the study of ancient DNA, have found that they are ultimately descended from peoples from the Tibetan plateau," Mark said, adding that their research has revealed a complex set of mortuary practices over time, and archaeometric studies of glass beads, metals, and other artifacts show that Upper Mustang was connected societies to South Asia as well as Central Asia and the Middle East.According to them, the study was conducted in collaboration with the Department of Archeology, Tribhuvan University and Pokhara University while the logistics management was carried out by Shangri-La Nepal Foundation and Shangri-La Nepal Treks. .

This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com