From southeast Asia to the sewers: Study determines new geographical origins of brown rats

(Molecular Biology and Evolution (Oxford University Press)) an international research team of more than 20 institutions has performed the largest, whole genome DNA sequencing of 110 wild brown rats from across the world. The new study, published in the advanced online edition of the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, has revealed that brown rats originally migrated 'Out of Asia' from southern East Asia about 3,600 years ago, rapidly spreading, first into the Middle East, and then to Europe and Africa.
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news