Dr. Selina Brace smiling next to the title of the presentation

What Can Fossilized Poop Tell Us About the Ice Age?

Name: What Can Fossilized Poop Tell Us About the Ice Age?
Uploaded: 2026-08-17T00:00:00+00:00
Description: In this episode of Teach Me in 10 , Dr. Selina Brace from Natural History Museum, London, explores how advances in sequencing and targeted capture are expanding the genetic information researchers can recover from challenging ancient materials.

Video

Published: August 17, 2026

Laura Hemmingham, PhD

speaking with

Selina Brace, PhD

Ancient DNA sequencing enables researchers to recover genetic information from highly degraded specimens and reconstruct past species and ecosystems. While this is transforming paleogenomics, fragmented, damaged DNA and contamination continue to challenge recovery and interpretation.

In this episode of Teach Me in 10, Dr. Selina Brace, UKRI Merit Researcher in ancient DNA and Head of the Ancient DNA Laboratory at the Natural History Museum, London, explores how advances in sequencing and targeted capture are expanding the genetic information researchers can recover from challenging ancient materials. She reveals how fossilized dung provides insights into animal diets, population history, and past environments, while also exploring the emerging potential of ancient protein analysis.

Watch this episode to discover:

How next-generation sequencing expands ancient DNA recovery
What fossilized dung reveals about extinct ecosystems
Where paleogenomics and ancient protein analysis are heading

Further resources:

Meet the Author

Laura Hemmingham, PhD

Scientific Content Producer

Laura holds a BSc in Zoology from Queen Mary University of London, an MSc in Palaeoanthropology from UCL, and a PhD in Environmental Sciences from Royal Holloway, University of London. Her academic journey has been fueled by a broad interest in the life sciences and a passion for making complex science accessible to diverse audiences. Before joining Technology Networks in 2025, she gained experience across several areas of science communication, including e-learning, external communications, and science writing. Her work has focused on translating technical research into engaging, understandable content tailored for both specialist and general audiences. As a Scientific Content Producer for custom video content at Technology Networks, Laura is particularly interested in bridging the gap between scientific discovery and public engagement through creative storytelling. Her work aims to support scientific literacy while highlighting the real-world impact of research and innovation.

Interviewing

Selina Brace, PhD

UKRI Merit Researcher

Dr. Selina Brace is a UKRI Merit Researcher in ancient DNA and museum-based genomics and she is head of the Ancient DNA Laboratory at the Natural History Museum, London. She has worked in the field of ancient DNA for nearly 20 years. Her research focuses on ancient DNA (aDNA) from humans and other mammals. She uses genomic data to explore cultural shifts, site-specific events, taxonomy, and evolutionary relationships across species and populations. By reconstructing past population histories and population structure, she investigates how mammals responded to climatic and human-driven change, using these insights to inform modern conservation strategies.