Releasing the microbes from old bones: the effect of different DNA extraction protocols on microbial community profiling

  • Anne Marie Høier Eriksen*
  • , Lara Puetz
  • , Carolina Rocha
  • , Tue K. Nielsen
  • , Lars H. Hansen
  • , M. Thomas P. Gilbert
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal/Conference contribution in journal/Contribution to newspaperJournal articleResearchpeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

DNA-based characterisation of microbial communities can enable those interested in bone diagenesis to address questions relating to the complexity and diversity of said microbial communities. We explored whether biases could be introduced due to differences in the DNA extraction methods used. We investigated the effect of four alternative approaches on the extraction of DNA from bone, in order to examine the resulting effect on the bacterial and fungal OTUs recovered using metabarcoding. We found that the different extraction methods resulted in differences in the microbial OTU profiles generated, both when looking at the fungal and the bacterial communities within the bone. Our results emphasise the need for consistency when working with DNA extraction if comparison of results between different research groups are to be valid. Furthermore, it is clear that future efforts will be needed to determine which methods may provide the most accurate representation of the microbial community in bones.

Original languageEnglish
JournalScience and Technology of Archaeological Research
Volume6
Issue1
Pages (from-to)1-15
Number of pages15
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020

Keywords

  • 16S
  • bone diagenesis
  • extraction
  • ITS
  • metabarcoding
  • Microbial DNA
  • BIOEROSION
  • CONTAMINATION
  • BACTERIAL
  • DISCOVERY
  • RECOVERY
  • GENE
  • DIAGENESIS
  • DIVERSITY
  • SAMPLES
  • PCR

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Releasing the microbes from old bones: the effect of different DNA extraction protocols on microbial community profiling'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this