From 15 to 18 September 2026, five members of the Institute of Archaeogenomics at the ELTE Research Centre for the Humanities attended the symposium Reconstructing the human past: using ancient and modern genomics in Heidelberg, Germany.

The conference was jointly organised by the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). This year’s programme covered the full spectrum of palaeogenomics: human evolution, population history, migration, kinship, society, ethics, methodology, health and disease, as well as ancient pathogens and microbiomes.

In a flash talk session, Anna Szécsényi-Nagy, Director of our institute, presented the findings of archaeogenetic research conducted within the framework of the MTA–ELTE HTK Momentum Bioarchaeology Research Project. By analysing approximately 250 newly generated ancient genomes from northeastern Pannonia from the Roman period, the research team identified differences and dynamic changes in the complex demographic histories of communities living on the western and eastern sides of the Danube frontier. Authors and title of the presentation:

  • Anna Szécsényi-Nagy, Kristóf Jakab, Taylor Mateyka, Veronika Csáky, Mónika Merczi, Krisztián Kiss, Katalin Ottományi, Péter Vámos, Paula Zsidi, Orsolya Láng:
    Population structure and mobility in Roman frontier communities of the Carpathian Basin
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In addition, four of our colleagues presented their research in poster sessions at the conference.

Balázs Gyuris presented a comprehensive genetic and bioarchaeological analysis of the exceptionally rich Early Avar-period cemetery at Babarc (Hungary). This approach enabled the researchers to trace how the community's extraordinary wealth accumulated over time. According to the archaeogenomic findings, its members had far-reaching biological connections and strikingly diverse Eurasian genetic backgrounds. Authors and title of the poster:

  • Ahmet Buğra Şahin, Balázs Gyuris, Bence Gulyás, Norbert Faragó, Zsófia Rácz, Zsolt Tóth, Zsombor Győrffy-Villám, Réka Neményi, Zsolt Gallina, Zuzana Hofmanová, Johannes Krause, Tivadar Vida, Anna Szécsényi-Nagy:
    Comprehensive genetic and bioarchaeological analysis of an exceptionally rich early medieval community

Dániel Gerber presented preliminary results from the bioarchaeological analysis of human skeletal remains recovered from Remete-Felső Cave, near Budapest. Three Pleistocene teeth were found to most likely belong to a single individual who probably arrived in the region during one of the earliest waves of expansion of anatomically modern humans. In addition, from human remains dating to the Mesolithic period the researchers successfully obtained genomic data from hunter-gatherer communities in the western Carpathian Basin for the first time. Authors and title of the poster:

  • Dániel Gerber, Botond Heltai, István Major, György Lengyel, Kristóf Jakab, Krisztián Kiss, Balázs Gusztáv Mende, Anna Szécsényi-Nagy:
    Bioarchaeological analyses of human bone remains from the Remete-Felső Cave (Hungary) diversifies our knowledge on regional Pleistocene and Mesolithic biogeography

Chen Henrik Kozulin presented his epigenetic research conducted as a member of the Momentum Bioarchaeology Research Group. The project investigates aspects of lived conditions and local environmental influences reflected in biological variation among populations of Roman-period Pannonia by analysing DNA methylation patterns in human remains. Authors and title of the poster:

  • Chen Henrik Kozulin, Kristóf Jakab, Veronika Csáky, Botond Heltai, Anna Szécsényi-Nagy:
    Epigenetics of ancient Pannonia populations

In her poster presentation, Catherine Puello Mora introduced an automated workflow specifically developed to analyse ancient DNA data from horses, used to classify individuals into paternal lineages based on their Y-chromosomes. This standardised workflow will facilitate comparisons of Y-chromosome data across studies, help refine domestication models, and support the integration of fragmented male-lineage evidence into broader archaeogenomic interpretations. Authors and title of the poster:

  • Catherine Puello Mora, Dániel Gerber, Anna Szécsényi-Nagy:
    EquiY: a tree-aware framework for horse Y-chromosome classification and refinement