The Human Reference Genome (HRG) is inarguably the most important resource in human genomics, enabling major advances in human health via genomic medicine. Its latest version is a mosaic from very few humans. Recent genome projects on specific population cohorts unveiled a large amount of missing sequence data from HRG that might include beneficial and harmful traits. Our project (THESEUS) will establish a large-scale genomic reference resource for the human population of Crete, providing several opportunities for novel genomic discoveries and contributing to better insights of the genetic basis of complex metabolic traits and diseases. Through a comprehensive enomic and functional analysis of macrophage immune responses against a wide range of pathogens of an island population (Cretans), THESEUS aims to 1) assemble the first Cretan PanGenome (CPG) as a high-quality reference for population-based biomedical studies, 2) explore the genomic variants related to macrophage immunity and associations with specialized immune effector pathways of Cretans through time, enabled via comparisons to available genomes of ancient humans, 3) unveil the processes affecting their genetic constitution and 4) infer the forces that shaped human phylogeography in Crete. The CPG’s assembly will constitute a valuable resource for identifying previously undetectable disease-related variants in Cretans and thereby contribute to the increasing application of personalized medicine in clinical practice with substantial scientific and social impact. The correlation of genetic variants with distinct immune phenotypes in response to a diverse group of human pathogens and environmental stimuli will provide novel insights into physiological immune system evolution. The understanding of the genetic basis of physiological immunity of Cretans will serve as a basis for future studies on pathogenesis of multifactorial and polygenic human disorders and the design of personalized therapies.

APOIKIA, is an exemplary cooperation between academic, research, cultural heritage institutions and SMEs. Our purpose is to implement the state-of-the-art of science and technology for promoting and preserving a country's cultural wealth. The implementation of innovative technologies for answering historical questions such as the ancient colonization process enables the enrichment of the archaeological and cultural wealth of the region. Ancient Greek colonization raises important questions about the processes of migration population movements, the nature of interactions and the relations between metropolis and colonies. Our goal is to provide an initial account of the dynamic qualities behind ancient population dynamics and at the same time represent novel multidisciplinary results of an integrated understanding of the ancient population dynamicsin the Amvrakia - Corinth region. We will examine how the Corinthian settlers integrated themselves into existing indigenous societies and populations and spread by adapting and adopting existing material culture, settlements and monuments. The main question is how the Corinthian colonization affected or interacted with the native population of Ancient Amvrakia and its later demographic evolution. The innovation of the project is the study of colonization not as a single historical event but as a dynamic interaction between the metropolitan and colonial populations. The innovating dynamic methological approach of the proposed project encourages integration and promotes the innovative use of cultural heritage, as part of today’s life. The present proposalaims to develop advanced, interdisciplinary methods and approaches by linking archeology, bioarchaeology, archaeogenetics and museology for the study of culture material and biological findings. This approach leads to the insights of the complex perceptions and feelings for our culture, human interventions, events and behaviorsof our past. In this context, the archaeological sites of Ancient Amvrakia and Ancient Tenea (region of Corinth) with their rich archaeological, anthropological and environmental findings will be examined. The methodologicalapproach and the conclusions of the project are to be presented with modern means and methods of personalized interactive experience for the visitors of the cultural sites of Amvrakia and Tenea, through a series of activities that include a periodic exhibition, an Open Lab at the Archaeological Museum of Arta, and scientific training through workshop.

NEOMATRIX is a three-year-long international scientific collaboration project funded by the European Commission’s H2020 grant programme in the framework of the European Twinning instrument. Twinning aims to foster long-term relationships between administrations of existing and future EU countries, and to obtain concrete mandatory operational results through peer-to-peer activities. NEOMATRIX will achieve this through the training of young scientists in the scope of a scientific project that brings together the individual expertise of the four partner laboratories involved. The project investigates the Neolithic expansion across the Mediterranean, a complex landmark event in prehistory that so far has been resolved only in broad strokes. While archaeology and history have already provided explanations about the processes involved, many questions pertaining to specific demographic and cultural change remain open. Some of these questions can be answered most directly through archaeogenomics, or in other words, the analysis of ancient DNA (aDNA), and biogeochemistry data. With an interdisciplinary approach, NEOMATRIX aims to shed new light on the Neolithic expansion by studying demographic change in detail and linking these with changes in material culture, to investigate for instance how the rate of cultural change may be related to expansion dynamics, and how the role of gender might have changed as agricultural societies evolved. This approach will benefit from both the various expertise developed and the data already produced by the partner laboratories, whose collective reanalysis will not only increase the skills of the young scientists involved but also the level of interpretation of the results. NEOMATRIX brings together partners from four countries: Turkey, Greece, Sweden, and France. The main beneficiary of the project is Turkey’s first aDNA lab at Middle East Technical University (METU) together with its sister aDNA lab at Hacettepe University (HU). Both are located in Ankara, at the core of Anatolia, which is a strategically important region in terms of the project’s scientific questions. Through NEOMATRIX, the Ankara team has joined renowned partners with diverse strengths that can complement the former in various respects. These are: 1) The Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (FORTH), whose Ancient DNA Lab is the only archaeogenetics laboratory in Greece with strong expertise in paleogenomics, population genetics, and multiple isotope ratio analyses; 2) Stockholm University’s (SU) Department of Archaeology and Classical Studies and Center for Palaeogenetics, one of the world’s most active ancient genome analysis centres, who have been leading archaeogenomic research in European Neolithization since the early 2010s; 3) the Paleogenomics Lab at the Institute Jacques Monod, Université de Paris, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), a long-established evolutionary genomics lab with strong expertise in both animal and human ancient DNA research, in particular in the analysis of poorly preserved samples from areas with high temperatures. The above-mentioned questions on the Neolithization of the Mediterranean will be addressed and empasized through training and sharing of know-how among early-stage researchers (ESRs) and scientific management teams, through cross-lab visits, joint activities, workshops focused on method development and courses.

Theodore Papazoglou FORTH Synergy Grants: Spectra-Gen

In Spectra-Gen, molecular spectroscopic techniques can be used as pre-screening methods for evaluating DNA preservation in archaeological dental remains and can be utilized to develop a minimally destructive methodology that will allow us to select those ancient dental samples that exhibit a higher likelihood of yielding DNA. 

Past Funding