The shared genomic history of Middle- to Late-Holocene populations from the Southern Cone of South America

The Southern Cone represents the southernmost region of South America settled by humans. Although ancient genomes from southern Patagonia have been sequenced, genomes from the central Southern Cone (CSC) remain temporally and spatially sparse. Archaeology documents major cultural transformations during the Middle and Late Holocene, yet their relationship with demographic processes has been debated. We present genome-wide data from 52 individuals spanning 6,000 years, originating from four regions of the CSC in present-day Argentina and Uruguay: the central and southern Pampas, Northwest Patagonia, the Paraná River Delta and Lower Uruguay River, and the eastern lowlands of Uruguay. Genomic evidence from the Pampas reveals the presence of at least three distinct ancestries during the Middle Holocene. Although genetic contacts with southern Patagonian groups were sporadic, we identified the expansion of an ancestry of unknown geographic origin by 5,500 years ago (ya), which increased during the Late Holocene. This ancestry arrived in Northwest Patagonia by at least 600 ya and co-existed locally with a southern Andean genetic profile until colonial times. Genetic structure differentiates populations along the Paraná River Delta and Lower Uruguay River by 1,500 ya. Individuals from the eastern lowlands of Uruguay show genetic links with Sambaqui-associated populations from the southern coast of Brazil, suggesting the role of human dispersals in connecting tropical lowland cultural traditions. Our work documents the diffusion of genetically distinct groups across all studied regions and provides compelling evidence that large-scale human movements contributed to the remarkable cultural diversity of CSC populations during the Middle and Late Holocene.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
Current Biology
Published
2026-04-22
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2026.03.081
Primary Topic
Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

The shared genomic history of Middle- to Late-Holocene populations from the Southern Cone of South America

Ana María Chero Osorio, Cosimo Posth, Alessandro Achilli, José López Mazz et al.
Current Biology
Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
article

The shared genomic history of Middle- to Late-Holocene populations from the Southern Cone of South America

Ana María Chero Osorio, Cosimo Posth, Alessandro Achilli, José López Mazz, Lucía Spangenberg, Gustavo Flensborg, Hugo Naya, Mariela E. González, S. Iván Pérez, Valeria Bernal, María Bárbara Postillone, Mariano Bonomo, Nicola Rambaldi Migliore, Kim-Louise Krettek, Ella Reiter, Gustavo Politis, Cristina Dejean, Javier Maravall-López, David Reich, Nahuel Scheifler, Tatiana Tondini, Gustavo Martínez, Pablo G. Messineo
article en

Abstract

The Southern Cone represents the southernmost region of South America settled by humans. Although ancient genomes from southern Patagonia have been sequenced, genomes from the central Southern Cone (CSC) remain temporally and spatially sparse. Archaeology documents major cultural transformations during the Middle and Late Holocene, yet their relationship with demographic processes has been debated. We present genome-wide data from 52 individuals spanning 6,000 years, originating from four regions of the CSC in present-day Argentina and Uruguay: the central and southern Pampas, Northwest Patagonia, the Paraná River Delta and Lower Uruguay River, and the eastern lowlands of Uruguay. Genomic evidence from the Pampas reveals the presence of at least three distinct ancestries during the Middle Holocene. Although genetic contacts with southern Patagonian groups were sporadic, we identified the expansion of an ancestry of unknown geographic origin by 5,500 years ago (ya), which increased during the Late Holocene. This ancestry arrived in Northwest Patagonia by at least 600 ya and co-existed locally with a southern Andean genetic profile until colonial times. Genetic structure differentiates populations along the Paraná River Delta and Lower Uruguay River by 1,500 ya. Individuals from the eastern lowlands of Uruguay show genetic links with Sambaqui-associated populations from the southern coast of Brazil, suggesting the role of human dispersals in connecting tropical lowland cultural traditions. Our work documents the diffusion of genetically distinct groups across all studied regions and provides compelling evidence that large-scale human movements contributed to the remarkable cultural diversity of CSC populations during the Middle and Late Holocene.

Current BiologyVol. 36(9)
Broad Institute (US), Harvard University (US), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (AR), Universidad de la República de Uruguay (UY), University of Pavia (IT), Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires (AR), Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment (DE), Centro Científico Tecnológico - San Juan (AR), Universidad Maimónides (AR), National Archaeological Museum of Spain (ES), Centro Científico Tecnológico - La Plata (AR), Institut Pasteur de Montevideo (UY), Department of Archaeology (LK), Universidad de Montevideo (UY), Universidad Nacional de La Plata (AR)
Ministero dell'Istruzione e del Merito
Openalex Percentile: Top 15%
Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.