title: Tracing past human male movements in northern/eastern Africa and western Eurasia: new clues from Y-chromosomal haplogroups E-M78 and J-M12.
abstract: Detailed population data were obtained on the distribution of novel biallelic markers that finely dissect the human Y-chromosome haplogroup E-M78. Among 6,501 Y chromosomes sampled in 81 human populations worldwide, we found 517 E-M78 chromosomes and assigned them to 10 subhaplogroups. Eleven microsatellite loci were used to further evaluate subhaplogroup internal diversification. The geographic and quantitative analyses of haplogroup and microsatellite diversity is strongly suggestive of a northeastern African origin of E-M78, with a corridor for bidirectional migrations between northeastern and eastern Africa (at least 2 episodes between 23.9-17.3 ky and 18.0-5.9 ky ago), trans-Mediterranean migrations directly from northern Africa to Europe (mainly in the last 13.0 ky), and flow from northeastern Africa to western Asia between 20.0 and 6.8 ky ago. A single clade within E-M78 (E-V13) highlights a range expansion in the Bronze Age of southeastern Europe, which is also detected by haplogroup J-M12. Phylogeography pattern of molecular radiation and coalescence estimates for both haplogroups are similar and reveal that the genetic landscape of this region is, to a large extent, the consequence of a recent population growth in situ rather than the result of a mere flow of western Asian migrants in the early Neolithic. Our results not only provide a refinement of previous evolutionary hypotheses but also well-defined time frames for past human movements both in northern/eastern Africa and western Eurasia.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Genetica e Biologia Molecolare, Sapienza Università di Roma, Rome, Italy, and Laboratoire d'Immunologie, Hôpital de Sainte-Marguerite, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Fulvio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cruciani
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: La Fratta
authors.forename: Beniamino
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Trombetta
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Santolamazza
authors.forename: Daniele
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sellitto
authors.forename: Eliane Beraud
authors.initials: EB
authors.lastname: Colomb
authors.forename: Jean-Michel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Dugoujon
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Crivellaro
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Benincasa
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pascone
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Moral
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.forename: Bela
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Melegh
authors.forename: Guido
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Barbujani
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fuselli
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vona
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zagradisnik
authors.forename: Guenter
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Assum
authors.forename: Radim
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Brdicka
authors.forename: Andrey I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Kozlov
authors.forename: Georgi D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Efremov
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Coppa
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Novelletto
authors.forename: Rosaria
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Scozzari
mesh_terms: D000351:Africa, Eastern; D000352:Africa, Northern; D001211:Asia, Western; D041322:Chromosomes, Human, Y / Q000235:genetics*; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005060:Europe; D005828:Genetics, Population; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019021:Natural History