Study of 25 X-chromosome Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in African and Asian populations

There is growing interest in the study of X-chromosome markers in population and forensic genetics. Since most of the studies focused on Short Tandem Repeats (STRs), data concerning Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) are still scarce. In the present work, male samples from Africa ( Angola: n = 46; Mozambique: n = 42) and Asia (Taiwan: n = 21; China: n = 43; Bangladesh: n = 58) were analysed for 25 SNPs located on the X chromosome to evaluate the diversity pattern in the populations from the two continents. Data were compared with previously published results from Somalia and Mediterranean populations. The results showed a clear genetic differentiation between Sub-Saharan populations and those from northern Africa and the Mediterranean. The differentiation between eastern and southern Africa was also recognizable, with Angola and Mozambique being statistically different from Somalia but not from each other. Likewise, the Asian samples formed a separate cluster with Bangladesh exhibiting a statistically significant difference from those of China and Taiwan. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.