title: Ancient Genetic Signatures of Orang Asli Revealed by Killer Immunoglobulin-Like Receptor Gene Polymorphisms.
abstract: The aboriginal populations of Peninsular Malaysia, also known as Orang Asli (OA), comprise three major groups; Semang, Senoi and Proto-Malays. Here, we analyzed for the first time KIR gene polymorphisms for 167 OA individuals, including those from four smallest OA subgroups (Che Wong, Orang Kanaq, Lanoh and Kensiu) using polymerase chain reaction-sequence specific primer (PCR-SSP) analyses. The observed distribution of KIR profiles of OA is heterogenous; Haplotype B is the most frequent in the Semang subgroups (especially Batek) while Haplotype A is the most common type in the Senoi. The Semang subgroups were clustered together with the Africans, Indians, Papuans and Australian Aborigines in a principal component analysis (PCA) plot and shared many common genotypes (AB6, BB71, BB73 and BB159) observed in these other populations. Given that these populations also display high frequencies of Haplotype B, it is interesting to speculate that Haplotype B may be generally more frequent in ancient populations. In contrast, the two Senoi subgroups, Che Wong and Semai are displaced toward Southeast Asian and African populations in the PCA scatter plot, respectively. Orang Kanaq, the smallest and the most endangered of all OA subgroups, has lost some degree of genetic variation, as shown by their relatively high frequency of the AB2 genotype (0.73) and a total absence of KIR2DL2 and KIR2DS2 genes. Orang Kanaq tradition that strictly prohibits intermarriage with outsiders seems to have posed a serious threat to their survival. This present survey is a demonstration of the value of KIR polymorphisms in elucidating genetic relationships among human populations.
authors.affiliation: Human Identification/DNA Unit, School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Hanis Z A
authors.initials: HZ
authors.lastname: NurWaliyuddin
authors.affiliation: Human Identification/DNA Unit, School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.|Institute for Research in Molecular Medicine, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Mohd N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Norazmi
authors.affiliation: Human Identification/DNA Unit, School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Hisham A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Edinur
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand.
authors.forename: Geoffrey K
authors.initials: GK
authors.lastname: Chambers
authors.affiliation: Human Identification/DNA Unit, School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Sundararajulu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Panneerchelvam
authors.affiliation: Human Identification/DNA Unit, School of Health Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Health Campus, Kelantan, Malaysia.|Malaysian Institute of Pharmaceuticals and Nutraceuticals, National Institutes of Biotechnology Malaysia, Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation, Penang, Malaysia.
authors.forename: Zainuddin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zafarina
mesh_terms: D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics; D005838:Genotype; D006239:Haplotypes; D006801:Humans; D008296:Malaysia; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D054340:Receptors, KIR / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D054340:Receptors, KIR