title: The multiethnic ancestry of Bolivians as revealed by the analysis of Y-chromosome markers.
abstract: We have analyzed the specific male genetic component of 226 Bolivians recruited in five different regions ("departments"), La Paz, Cochabamba, Pando, Beni, and Santa Cruz. To evaluate the effect of geography on the distribution of genetic variability, the samples were also grouped into three main eco-geographical regions, namely, Andean, Sub-Andean, and Llanos. All the individuals were genotyped for 17 Y-STR and 32 Y-SNP markers. The average Y-chromosome Native American component in Bolivians is 28%, and it is mainly represented by haplogroup Q1a3a, while the average Y-chromosome European ancestry is 65%, and it is mainly represented by haplogroup R1b1-P25. The data indicate that there exists significant population sub-division in the country in terms of continental ancestry. Thus, the partition of ancestries in Llanos, Sub-Andean, and Andean regions is as follows (respectively): (i) Native American ancestry: 47%, 7%, and 19%, (ii) European ancestry: 46%, 86%, and 75%, and (iii) African ancestry: 7%, 7%, and 6%. The population sub-structure in the country is also well mirrored when inferred from an AMOVA analysis, indicating that among-population variance in the country reaches 9.74-11.15%. This suggests the convenience of using regional datasets for forensic applications in Bolivia, instead of using a global and single country database. By comparing the Y-chromosome patterns with those previously reported on the same individuals on autosomal SNPs and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), it becomes clear that Bolivians show a strong gender-bias.
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Jorge Mario
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Cárdenas
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Tanja
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Heinz
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Jacobo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pardo-Seco
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Vanesa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Álvarez-Iglesias
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Taboada-Echalar
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sánchez-Diz
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain.
authors.forename: Ángel
authors.initials: Á
authors.lastname: Carracedo
authors.affiliation: Unidade de Xenética, Departamento de Anatomía Patolóxica e Ciencias Forenses, and Instituto de Ciencias Forenses, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Galicia, Spain. Electronic address: antonio.salas@usc.es.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Salas
mesh_terms: D001838:Bolivia; D041322:Chromosomes, Human, Y; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000235:genetics*; D005819:Genetic Markers; D006239:Haplotypes; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018895:Microsatellite Repeats; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
chemical_list: D005819:Genetic Markers
keywords: Bolivia; Gender-bias; Haplogroup; Population sub-structure; Y-SNPs; Y-STRs