Metagenomic composition analysis of sedimentary ancient DNA from the Isle of Wight

The DNA from several organisms is sequenced conjointly in metagenomics. This allows searching for exogenous microorganisms contained in the samples, with the goal of studying the evolution and co-evolution of host-pathogen, namely for building better diagnostics and therapeutics. However, the quantity and quality of the DNA present in the samples is very poor, pushing the responsibility of analysis improvements into the development of better computational methods. Here, we develop a new processing paradigm to infer the metagenomic composition analysis based on the relative compression of whole genome sequences. Using this method, we present the metagenomic composition analysis of a sedimentary ancient DNA sample, dated to 8,000 years before the present, from the Isle of Wight, United Kingdom. The results show several viruses and bacteria expressing high levels of similarity relative to the samples, namely a circular virus similar to the Avon-Heathcote estuary virus 14 sequenced in New Zealand.