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Professor Daniel Bradley

Professor (Genetics)
      
Profile Photo

Professor Daniel Bradley

Professor (Genetics)

 Daniel.Bradley@tcd.ie

 3531896 1265/1088


Dan Bradley was brought up on a Northern Irish farm and after a degree in Genetics from Cambridge University and PhD in medical genetics from Trinity College Dublin he started to work on the genetics of each species present on that farm, including Irish humans, and has done for over 30 years. With his colleagues he has combined analysis of ancient and modern cattle to inform on the origins of these and other domesticates and pioneered the molecular genetic analysis of Irish populations. He holds a Personal Chair in Population Genetics in Trinity and was awarded the 2020 Royal Irish Academy Gold Medal in the Life Sciences
  ADMIXTURE   Ancient DNA analysis and origins of Irish mammals   ANIMAL DOMESTICATION   Archaeozoological genetics and the origins of cattle pastoralism   BOVINE EVOLUTION   BREED RELATIONSHIPS   CATTLE   CATTLE BOS-TAURUS   CONTROL REGION   Detection of recombination in mammalian mtDNA   DNA-SEQUENCE   DOMESTICATION   EQUUS CABALLUS   EUKARYOTIC GENOMES   EUROPEAN CATTLE   EUROPEAN POPULATIONS   EVOLUTION   FAMILY   FARMED   GENE   GENETIC CONSERVATION   GENETIC DIVERSITY   GENETIC VARIATION   HORSE   HUMAN DNA   INTROGRESSION   LINKAGE ANALYSIS   LINKAGE GROUP   LOCALIZATION   LOCI   MAP   MICROSATELLITE   MITOCHONDRIAL   MITOCHONDRIAL DNA   MTDNA   MUTATION   MYOTONIC-DYSTROPHY GENE   ORIGIN   ORIGINS   PIGS   POLYMORPHISMS   Population genetic signatures of selection in cattle and other domesticates   Population genetics, selection, structure and origins in Irish human populations   PREVALENCE   RELEASE   RYANODINE RECEPTOR GENE   SARCOPLASMIC-RETICULUM   SEQUENCE   SHEEP   Y chromosome diverisity and the genetic architecture of Irish surnames
Project Title
 AncestralWeave: 1000 ancient genomes: gene-economy innovation in cattle, sheep and goat
From
December 2020
To
November 2025
Summary
The genetic threads of goat, cattle and sheep ancestry have been woven by human breeding, environmental pressures, hybridisation and the chance effects of genetic drift. The ancestral weaves of these key animals intertwine with human creativity in the most profoundly innovative episodes of the human past. Three broad episodes of particular import were: initial domestications circa 11 kya in Southwest Asia; the intensification circa 6 kya of use of those animal products which are harvested without killing such as wool, milk and traction; and the development of exceptionally productive landraces, later formalized into breeds, in recent millennia. However, each of these is loosely defined in time and space, the key traits are often osteologically invisible, and the vectors of causality in their virtuous cycles of gene-economy innovation are completely unknown. A combination of high coverage ancient whole genome data coupled with new analysis methods that allow efficient computation of genomewide locus genealogies will be used to untangle the threads of ancestry in sheep, cattle and goat across the whole genome in these transformative phases. Combining these with additional low coverage genomes generated from less preserved samples will generate a total set of 1,000 ancient animal genomes. These data will be unprecedented and will allow tracking of selection at trait genes, in order to detect human agency in breeding and, in collaboration with archaeologist partners, asking are there periods and places where threads of innovation coalesce. The project will also use ancient epigenetics to explore archaeological variation in gene activation patterns and will seek to understand the problematic build up of harmful mutations that threaten livestock today. With cognate disciplines, it will compare signals of animal mobility identifying distinct genetic strata correlating with archaeological horizons and affording the prospect of DNA-dating in future excavation.
Funding Agency
European Research Council
Programme
Advanced Grant

Details Date
Member of a Wellcome Trust Panel responsible for the disbursement of research funds in Bioarchaeology
Appointed to Editorial Board of the international journal, Animal Genetics
Five times juror in the European Contest for Young Scientists
Member of the Royal Irish Academy Advisory Committee on Genetic Anthropology
Served as an expert consultant on genetic distance and biodiversity to the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations
Member, PHG Funded PI's and Researchers, All Researchers funded under Cycle 3 PRTLI - Programme for Human Genomics
Details Date From Date To
Member of International Society of Animal Genetics
former President of Irish Society of Human Genetics
Anna Spyrou, Andreas C. Dimitriou, Valeria Mattiangeli, Deborah Diquelou, Daniel G. Bradley, Victoria E. Mullin, Georgia Hadjipavlou, A multidisciplinary framework for adding value to the indigenous cattle breed of Cyprus, Genetic Resources, 7, (13), 2026, p118 - 128, p118-128 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Charllotte Blacka, Clare Rainsford, Ciarán G. O"Connor, Victoria E. Mullin, Daniel G. Bradley, Peter Halkon, Jackie A. Mosely, Kirsty Penkman, Jessica Hendy, Integration of age-at-death and novel peptide sex estimation reveals cattle culling practices at Yorkshire Iron Age shrine site, Journal of Archaeological Science, 190, 2026, p106575 - 106575, p106575-106575 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Said I. Ng'ang'a, James A. Ward, Stephen J. Rossiter, Chris G. Faulkes, Katia Bougiouri, Gillian P. McHugo, F.P.D. Cotterill, Atunga Nyachieo, Olaf Thalmann, Ivica Medugorac, S Krebs, Tad S. Sonstegard, Olivier Hanotte, Daniel G. Bradley, Gary Vaughan-Smith, David E. MacHugh, Laurent Frantz, Accurate imputation of African cattle genomes using a diverse reference panel, BMC Genomics, 27, (1), 2026, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Kevin G. Daly, Victoria E. Mullin, Andrew J. Hare, Áine Halpin, Valeria Mattiangeli, Matthew D. Teasdale, Conor Rossi, Sheila Geiger, Stefan Krebs, Ivica Medugorac, Edson Sandoval-Castellanos, Mihriban Özbasaran, Günes Duru, Sevil Gülcür, Nadja Pöllath, Matthew Collins, Laurent Frantz, Emmanuelle Vila, Peter Zidarov, Simon Stoddart, Bazartseren Boldgiv, Ludovic Orlando, Mike Parker Pearson, Jacqui Mullville, Igor V. Askeyev, Arthur O. Askeyev, Oleg V. Askeyev, Dilyara N. Shaymuratova, Youri Van den Hurk, Andrea Zeeb-Lanz, Rose-Marie Arbogast, Helmut Hemmer, Hossein Davoudi, Sarieh Amiri, Sanaz Beizaee Doost, Delphine Decruyenaere, Homa Fathi, Roya Khazaeli, Yousef Hassanzadeh, Alireza Sardari, Johanna Lhuillier, Mostafa Abdolahi, Geoffrey D. Summers, Catherine Marro, Veli Bahshaliyev, Rémi Berthon, Canan Çakirlar, Norbert Benecke, Amelie Scheu, Joachim Burger, Eberhard Sauer, Liora Kolska Horwitz, Benjamin Arbuckle, Hijlke Buitenhuis, Lionel Gourichon, Jelena Bulatovic, Terry O'Connor, David Orton, Mindia Jalabadze, Stephen Rhodes, Michael Chazan, Vecihi Özkaya, Melinda Zeder, Levent Atici, Marjan Mashkour, Joris Peters, Daniel G. Bradley, Ancient genomics and the origin, dispersal, and development of domestic sheep, Science, 2025, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  TARA - Full Text  URL
Cassidy LM, Russell M, Smith M, Delbarre G, Cheetham P, Manley H, Mattiangeli V, Breslin EM, Jackson I, McCann M, Little H, O'Connor CG, Heaslip B, Lawson D, Endicott P, Bradley DG., Continental influx and pervasive matrilocality in Iron Age Britain., Nature, 637, (8048), 2025, p1136-1142 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Gonzalo Oteo"García, Marina Silva, M. George B. Foody, Bobby Yau, Alessandro Fichera, Llorenç Alapont, Pierre Justeau, Simão Rodrigues, Rita Monteiro, Francesca Gandini, María Luisa Rovira Gomar, Albert Ribera i Lacomba, Josep Pascual Beneyto, Valeria Mattiangeli, Daniel G. Bradley, Ceiridwen J. Edwards, Maria Pala, Martin Richards, Medieval genomes from eastern Iberia illuminate the role of Morisco mass deportations in dismantling a long-standing genetic bridge with North Africa, Genome biology, 26, (1), 2025, p108 - 108, p108-108 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Jaime Lira Garrido, Gaétan Tressières, Loreleï Chauvey, Stéphanie Schiavinato, Laure Tonasso"Calvière, Andaine Seguin"Orlando, John Southon, Beth Shapiro, Clément P. Bataille, Julie Birgel, Stefanie Wagner, Naveed Khan, Xuexue Liu, José María Rodanés Vicente, Jesús Vicente Picazo Millán, Josep Giralt, Natàlia Alonso, Isidro Aguilera, Adriano Orsingher, Angela Trentacoste, Xavier Payà, Marta Morán, María Pilar Iborra Eres, Silvia Albizuri, Sílvia Valenzuela, Imma Mestres Santandreu, Montserrat Durán i Caixal, Jordí Principal, Jordi Huguet, Xavier Esteve, Mireia Pedro Pasqual, Nohemi Sala, Adrián Pablos, Patricia Martín, Josep María Vergès, Rodrigo Portero, Pablo Arias Cabal, Roberto Ontañón Peredo, Cleia Detry, Cristina Lu""s, João Luís Cardoso, Aren M. Maeir, Maria João Valente, Elena Grau, Vicent Estall I Poles, Joaquín Alfonso Llorens, Ana Miguélez González, Armelle Gardeisen, Michele Cupitò, U. Tecchiati, Daniel G. Bradley, Liora Kolska Horwitz, Esther Rodríguez González, Ariadna Nieto"Espinet, Pere Rosselló Bover, Rosa Ruiz Entrecanales, Ignasi Garcés Estallo, Joaquín Jiménez Fragoso, Sebastián Celestino, Ludovic Orlando, The genomic history of Iberian horses since the last Ice Age, Nature Communications, 16, (1), 2025, p7098 - 7098, p7098-7098 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Kuldeep D. More, Petra Raji" Šikanji", Marcel Buri", Tajana Trbojevi" Vuki"evi", Nadir Álvarez, Jean"Christophe Castel, Myriam Boudadi"Maligne, Bastiaan Star, Julian Post-Melbye, Christian Løchsen Rødsrud, David W. G. Stanton, Sophy Charlton, Victoria E. Mullin, Kevin G. Daly, Nohemi Sala Burgos, Adrián Pablos, Love Dalén, Daniel G. Bradley, Laurent Frantz, Greger Larson, Ludovic Orlando, Ophélie Lebrasseur, Jaime Lira Garrido, Andaine Seguin"Orlando, Emmanuel Discamps, Oscar Estrada, Laure Tonasso"Calvière, Loreleï Chauvey, Gaétan Tressières, Stéphanie Schiavinato, Morgane Gibert, Horacio Padula, Horacio Chiavazza, Pablo Marcelo Fernández, Nicolás Guardia, Caroline Borges, Stéphane Bertani, Juan Contreras"Mancilla, Diana Allccarima"Crisóstomo, Miguel Fhon, Éric Barrey, Léa Charliquart, Émilie Robbe, Thibault de Noblet, Rinat Zhumatayev, Samat Shakenov, Emmanuelle Vila, Rémi Berthon, Marjan Mashkour, Roya Khazaeli, A. Nikgoftar, Ali A. Vahdati, ". ". """""""", Jean"Luc Houle, Jamsranjav Bayarsaikhan, Jaros"aw Wilczy"ski, Magdalena Moskal"del Hoyo, Marek Nowak, William Taylor, Adrian B"l""escu, Roxana Dobrescu, Norbert Benecke, Benjamin S. Arbuckle, Sharon R. Steadman, Gregory McMahon, Validating a Target"Enrichment Design for Capturing Uniparental Haplotypes in Ancient Domesticated Animals, Molecular Ecology Resources, 25, (7), 2025, pe14112 - e14112, pe14112-e14112 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
R.P.M.A. Crooijmans, R. Gonzalez Prendes, Licia Colli, Marcello Del Corvo, Mario Barbato, Elisa Somenzi, Gwenola Tosser"Klopp, Gábor Mészáros, Paolo Ajmone"Marsan, Steffen Weigend, Barbara C. Wallner, Molly E. McCue, Ludovic Orlando, Daniel G. Bradley, S.J. Hiemstra, Dirkjan Schokker, Nathalie Peynot, Alessandra Stella, Gwendal Restoux, Martien A. M. Groenen, Michèle Tixier"Boichard, IMAGE001 : A new livestock multispecies SNP array to characterize genomic variation in European livestock gene bank collections, Animal Genetics, 56, (5), 2025, pe70039 - e70039, pe70039-e70039 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Lara M Cassidy, Miles Russell, Martin Smith, Gabrielle Delbarre, Paul Cheetham, Harry Manley, Valeria Mattiangeli, Emily M Breslin, Iseult Jackson, Maeve McCann, Harry Little, Ciarán G O"Connor, Beth Heaslip, Daniel Lawson, Phillip Endicott, Daniel G Bradley, Continental influx and pervasive matrilocality in Iron Age Britain, Nature, 637, 2025, p1136 - 1142, Journal Article, PUBLISHED
  

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Oxen, Grolier Encyclopedia New Book of Knowledge, 2003, [Bradley DG ], Item in dictionary or encyclopaedia, etc, PUBLISHED
Bradley DG and Hill EW, Whats in a surname, Archaeology Ireland , 14, 2000, p22 - 23, Journal Article, PUBLISHED
Designing life: the role of inheritance in, editor(s)M. Jumker-Kenny , Designing life? Genetics, procreation and ethics, Aldershot, Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 1999, [Bradley DG], Book Chapter, PUBLISHED
Loftus R.T., D.E. MacHugh, P. Cunningham and D.G. Bradley, Animal domestication [letter], Science, 283, 1999, p329-30 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED
Loftus RT, D.G. Bradley, D.E. MacHugh, C.S. Troy, C.N. Meghen and E.P. Cunningham , Molecular genetics and the evolution of domesticated cattle, 8th World Conference on Animal Production, 1, 1998, pp144 - 145, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED
Meghen, C. N., Scott, C. S., Bradley, D. G., MacHugh, D. E., Loftus, R. T. and Cunningham, E. P. , DNA based traceability for the meat industry, 8th World Conference on Animal Production, 1998, pp774 - 775, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED
Bradley, DG and O'Sullivan, M., Tracing our ancient ancestors., Archaeology Ireland , 39, 1997, p18 - 20, Journal Article, PUBLISHED
McHugh, D. E., Loftus, R. T., Troy, C. S. and Bradley, D. G. , DNA Analysis and the origins and history of domesticated cattle, Archaeology of Southwest Asia (ASWA) conference, Budapest, 1996, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED
Bradley, D. G., Loftus, R. T., MacHugh, D. E. and Cunningham, P., The Molecular Evolution of Domestic cattle, Symposium on Mediterranean Animal Germplasm and Future Human Challenges, Salerno, 1996, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED
Cunningham, E. P., Loftus, R. T., MacHugh, D. E., Bradley, D. G., Molecular evolution of African, European and Asian Cattle, 21, 5th World Congress on Genetics Applied to Livestock Production, 1994, pp86 - 89, Conference Paper, PUBLISHED

  


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Award Date
TCD Fellowship 2000
CGIAR award for outstanding scientific article 2003
Member of the Royal Irish Academy 2009
Royal Irish Academy Gold Medal in the Life Sciences 2020
I have active research in: ancient genomic analysis of western European humans, particularly Irish archaeological remains; ancient genomes of cattle sheep and goat.