Ancient Korean Peninsula Dogs Genetically Close to Dingoes but Have a Distinct Lineage

National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute Achieves Korea's First Whole-Genome Sequencing
Published in PLOS ONE... Evidence of Genetic Exchange Between Eastern and Western Dogs
Japanese Wolf Genes Detected... Continued Interaction With Wolves After Domestication

Australia's wild dog Dingo.

The National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute announced on May 7 that it has sequenced the whole genome of ancient dogs that lived on the Korean Peninsula for the first time in Korea, and published the findings in the international journal PLOS ONE.

The institute formed a joint research team with the Conservation Science Division of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, the Seokdang Museum at Dong-A University, and the Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI) in Japan. The team analyzed four ancient dogs excavated from the Neukdo site in Sacheon, dating from the 3rd century BCE to around the beginning of the Common Era, and from the Bonghwang-dong site in Gimhae, built between the 4th and 6th centuries CE.

The research team succeeded in reconstructing the whole genome information using next-generation sequencing (NGS). NGS is a cutting-edge technology that can simultaneously read large quantities of DNA to analyze the entire genome.

The analysis revealed that the ancient dogs of the Korean Peninsula were genetically close to the Australian wild dog, Dingo, and the New Guinea singing dog, both of which retain many characteristics of early East Eurasian dogs. However, they were not identical populations, suggesting that a distinct lineage has existed on the peninsula for a long time. An institute official commented, "This indicates that East Asian dog populations were in fact diversified into several lineages."

Ancient Korean Peninsula dog DNA analysis image.

The DNA analysis also detected 15% to 21% genetic contribution from western Eurasian dogs, including those from Europe and Africa. This proportion was lower than in modern indigenous Korean breeds such as the Jindo, Donggyeongi, and Sapsaree, which have 50% to 70% western Eurasian ancestry.

An institute official explained, "The closer the dog is to the present, the higher the proportion of western Eurasian DNA tends to be. This suggests that, over time, dogs from different regions gradually interbred." The official added, however, "It has not yet been confirmed whether ancient Korean dogs and modern indigenous breeds belong to the exact same lineage."

It was also found that ancient Korean dogs had some genetic exchange with wolf populations. DNA analysis revealed 7% to 9% Japanese wolf ancestry, as well as evidence of genetic flow involving Korean and Chinese wolves. An institute official interpreted this as meaning, "Even after domestication, dogs were not completely separated from wolves and continued to interact genetically." The official added, "We plan to further clarify the evolutionary process of dogs on the Korean Peninsula by securing additional genome data from Neolithic dogs."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.