Who Really Were the Carthaginians?

Historians have presumed for centuries that Rome's age-old foes, long-established Carthaginians, descended from Levantine Phoenicians. However, an unprecedented eight-year genetic research reveals a different, more complicated tale.

Researchers have analyzed ancient DNA from 210 individuals at sites in North Africa, Sicily, Iberia, and other areas inhabited by Carthaginians. What was discovered? The majority of Carthaginians shared little genetic ancestry with the Levant. Instead, they were genetically close to ancient Greeks, Sicilian Greeks particularly, with whom they intermingled. Even when retaining Phoenician religion and language, they were not eastern Mediterranean migrants. They were genetically hybrid people intermixing with local populations and regional populations. "This reveals how identity in ancient history was more cultural than genetic," suggests historian Eve MacDonald. To be a Carthaginian was a question not of blood, but of shared practice, speech, and myth. In Roman conflicts with Carthage during the Punic Wars, Rome's foe might have been more Mediterranean than Middle Eastern.

Sources:

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/24/science/archaeology-genetics-carthage-phoenician.html

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-08913-3

A Baby Was Born With DNA From 3 People. Here's How That’s Possible

In an article by Alice Park, “A Baby Was Born With DNA From 3 People. Here's How That’s Possible”, she explains how it was possible for a thirty-two year old woman to give birth in Greece. The most miraculous part about the birth is that it occurred after she had many failed IVF treatments previously. Genetics explains how this was possible. 

The technique utilized by the Institute of Life in Athens is known as Maternal Spindle Transfer. Very much is still unknown, so the method is not currently allowed to be practiced in the United States. Maternal Spindle Transfer takes DNA from the mother’s egg and puts it into the donor egg of a different woman. The donor egg is first emptied of its own DNA. Then, the egg with the actual mother’s genes is allowed to be fertilized and such. 

Above is an image of how the transfer works. Image is provided by the Institute of Life. 

Research has shown the method to be a viable option for mothers with mitochondrial diseases. Because the mother’s DNA is placed into another egg, it is able to be taken care of by the new egg’s mitochondria. So, women with problems with their own mitochondria are able to use those of another egg. 

In the most recent birth, the mother did not actually have a mitochondrial disease. The success that unfolded leads researchers to believe that the mitochondria may play an even more vital role in reproduction than previously thought. In fact, a new study, “How egg cells choose their best powerhouses to pass on”, done in fruit flies by researchers at NYU and the University of Toronto looks more into the importance of mitochondria. Their tests actually reveal that the cell works hard to make sure that the best mitochondria are passed on. Because the cell works so hard to weed out “bad” mitochondria, it implies that having healthy and functioning mitochondria is vital for reproduction. 

It is amazing that this woman was able to give birth. However, he will become studied very closely throughout his life, because he actually has the DNA of three parents. The explanation for this seemingly impossible situation comes from the intriguing mitochondria. Since the mitochondria has its own DNA, now the baby has DNA from the mother, the mitochondria in the donor egg, and the father. 

I had never previously thought about how important the mitochondria was in reproduction. It makes perfect sense seeing as the mitochondria is constantly referred to as the powerhouse of the cell. If the powerhouse is not functioning properly, how is the cell meant to work half as well? Even more intriguing is the circular DNA in the mitochondria. Through the theory of endosymbiosis, we have learned that the mitochondria was engulfed containing its own DNA. The recent birth of a child with mitochondria different from the mother could hold answers on a very interesting topic facing the field of science. In genetics, our genome seems to hold our own personal blueprint. While a lot of it is similar, even a single difference holds the power to create a whole new individual. I am very curious to see how having donor mitochondria will interact. Regardless, it is truly impressive that this was even able to happen in the first place. 

Are Turkish People Really Turkish?

In early 2018, the country of Turkey released its ever so tightly kept population register, dating back to Ottoman times with ancestry records going back as far as 1882. Much to their surprise, the Turkish citizens found that the government emphasis on being a “pure Turk”, was not true. Many are now finding that their ancestry ranges from Kurdish descent, to western European. A lot of the Ottoman Armenian citizens were killed in forced deportation in 1915, thus destroying a lot of the gene pool in the process. For years, the Ottomans worked off the millet system, in which different racial/religious groups (Muslims, Catholics, Greek Orthodox, and Jews) could not interact and produce offspring with one another. This caused a giant drop in genetic diversity. To combat this, they put into effect a population exchange in 1923, having 1.2 million Greeks in Turkey, and 300,000 Turks in Greece causing an exchange in genes between the two countries when producing offspring.

By releasing this information and making it public, the Turkish government has ended that prior thought that the Turkish ancestry was “pure”. These public articles are not to remind the Turks that their ancestry is not pure and that their lineage is also not pure, but to remind them to embrace their new profound culture and have pride in their newly discovered gene pool that they might have.

This article was a good read. It shows how life is not as always as it seems. In the case of the Turks, it’s a good example of genetic drift and cultural diversity in how different people from different cultures interconnect to produce offspring with a high genetic diversity.

(Link to related article)