Molecular characterisation of a mummified body found in a glacier

Abstract A complete genetic profile of a mummified male body that had emerged from the melting ice of an Alpine Glacier was achieved. The body could be dated back to the late 1920s, due to the finding of newspaper cuttings in an internal pocket of the clothes. DNA was recovered from still well preserved internal organs and nail clippings. Autosomal STRs, Y chromosomal STRs and SNPs and mtDNA HV1 region were determined in order to provide a complete genetic survey of the mummified body. In a future perspective, after having collected general information on the possible identity of the body, all these genetic data, and especially the ones from the lineage markers, could be used to get a positive identification.