Ancient DNA unveils distinctive ancestries in the Bronze and Iron Ages of East Tianshan

Abstract

Researchers sequenced ancient DNA from 135 Bronze Age and Iron Age individuals across 11 archaeological sites in the East Tianshan mountain corridors of Xinjiang, northwest China — a key east-west migration route later formalized as the Silk Road. Genetic diversity in the region increased over time: Iron Age populations retained substantial continuity with their Bronze Age predecessors but also received additional genetic contributions from steppe pastoralist groups and Central Asian populations. The admixture patterns point to sustained or repeated episodes of gene flow rather than a single mixing event, indicating that East Tianshan was a long-term corridor of population interaction well before the historical Silk Road era.