Wolf

Pic: wikimedia commons

Common knowledge dictates that wolves are the ancestors of our pet dogs, but in which part of the world did domestication begin?

Scientists at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) have compared DNA from dogs and wolves, discovering that the first known instances of domesticated dogs occurred somewhere in the Middle East.

This has come as a surprise to many, even Robert Wayne, head of the research team.  "Previous papers have suggested it was East Asia," said Wayne.

But previous studies apparently focused only on mitochondrial DNA, rather than looking at all 2.4 billion letters of which the dog genome is comprised.

Wayne and his research team looked at the DNA from 200 wild gray wolves, examining populations from East Asia, China, Europe, as well as the Middle East. In each instance, characteristics were found that are unique and particular to each of the locations.

The team then analyzed DNA from more than 900 dogs from 85 different breeds, comparing these to genetic markers in the wolves. The findings revealed that most instances of similar genetic markers originate from the Middle East.

Tamar Dayan, a zoologist at Tel Aviv University in Israel, was not surprised by the findings. According to Dayan, dog skeletons from over 12,000 or 13,000 years ago have been found in what is now northern Israel : "They're found in burials with humans in a very clear human context."

Wayne and his research team, however, still have quite a bit of research to undergo, in the hopes of supplementing their current data.