title: Y-short tandem repeat haplotype and paternal lineage of the Ezhava population of Kerala, south India.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To analyze the haplotype of the Ezhava population of Kerala, south India, using 8 short tandem repeat (STR) loci on the Y chromosome and trace the paternal genetic lineage of the population.
  
  
  METHODS
  Whole blood samples (n=104) were collected from unrelated healthy men of the Ezhava population over a period of one year from October 2009. Genomic DNA was extracted by salting out method. All samples were genotyped for the 8 Y-STR loci by the AmpFiSTR Y-filer PCR Amplification Kit. The haplotype and allele frequencies were determined by direct counting and analyzed using Arlequin 3.1 software, and molecular variance was calculated with the Y-chromosome haplotype reference database online analysis tool, www.yhrd.org.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Among the 104 examined haplotypes, we found 98 unique ones. The average gene diversity was 0.669, with the highest diversity of 0.9462 observed for the biallelic Y-STR marker DYS 385. The allele frequency among DYS loci varied between 0.0096 and 0.75. Out of the 104 haplotypes, 10 were identical to the Jat Sikh population of Punjab, which is the greatest number among the Indian populations, and 4 to the Turkish population, which is the greatest number among the European populations. According to the allele frequency of Y-STR, the Ezhavas were genetically more similar to the Europeans (60%) than to the East Asians (40%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The vast majority of haplotypes were observed only once, reflecting the enormous genetic heterogeneity of the Ezhavas. Based on the genotype, the Ezhavas showed more resemblance to Jat Sikh population of Punjab and the Turkish populations than to the East Asians, hence indicating a paternal lineage of European origin.
authors.affiliation: Center for Biotechnology and Nanotechnology, Department of Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering, Sree Buddha College of Engineering, Kerala, India. seemanairp@gmail.com
authors.forename: Seema P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Nair
authors.forename: Aswathy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Geetha
authors.forename: Chippy
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jagannath
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D041322:Chromosomes, Human, Y / Q000235:genetics*; D005784:Gene Amplification / Q000235:genetics*; D005819:Genetic Markers; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005828:Genetics, Population; D005838:Genotype; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers