Centuries-old Incan mummy's DNA reveals untold story of ancient lineage

Sequenced genome of boy who was sacrificed by the Inca 500 years ago points to extent of genetic diversity in the Andes before the Spanish arrived

Archaeologists and geneticists have sequenced the genome of a boy sacrificed 500 years ago during an Incan ritual in the Andes, finding a previously unidentified lineage that hints at genetic diversity before the Spanish landed in the Americas.

Spanish geneticists extracted the DNA of a mummy found in the icy heights of Aconcagua, the world's tallest mountain outside Asia, near the border of Argentina and Chile. The mummy, of a seven-year-old boy who was sacrificed by the Inca, showed a DNA signature that has virtually disappeared in modern South Americans.