title: Mitochondrial super-haplogroup U diversity in Serbians.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Available mitochondrial (mtDNA) data demonstrate genetic differentiation among South Slavs inhabiting the Balkan Peninsula. However, their resolution is insufficient to elucidate the female-specific aspects of the genetic history of South Slavs, including the genetic impact of various migrations which were rather common within the Balkans, a region having a turbulent demographic history.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim was to thoroughly study complete mitogenomes of Serbians, a population linking westward and eastward South Slavs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-six predominantly Serbian super-haplogroup U complete mitogenomes were analysed phylogenetically against ∼4000 available complete mtDNAs of modern and ancient Western Eurasians.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serbians share a number of U mtDNA lineages with Southern, Eastern-Central and North-Western Europeans. Putative Balkan-specific lineages (e.g. U1a1c2, U4c1b1, U5b3j, K1a4l and K1a13a1) and lineages shared among Serbians (South Slavs) and West and East Slavs were detected (e.g. U2e1b1, U2e2a1d, U4a2a, U4a2c, U4a2g1, U4d2b and U5b1a1).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The exceptional diversity of maternal lineages found in Serbians may be associated with the genetic impact of both autochthonous pre-Slavic Balkan populations whose mtDNA gene pool was affected by migrations of various populations over time (e.g. Bronze Age pastoralists) and Slavic and Germanic newcomers in the early Middle Ages.
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering , University of Belgrade , Belgrade , Serbia.
authors.forename: Slobodan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Davidovic
authors.affiliation: b Genetics Laboratory, Institute of Biological Problems of the North , Russian Academy of Sciences , Magadan , Russia.
authors.forename: Boris
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Malyarchuk
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering , University of Belgrade , Belgrade , Serbia.
authors.forename: Jelena
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Aleksic
authors.affiliation: b Genetics Laboratory, Institute of Biological Problems of the North , Russian Academy of Sciences , Magadan , Russia.
authors.forename: Miroslava
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Derenko
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering , University of Belgrade , Belgrade , Serbia.
authors.forename: Vladanka
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Topalovic
authors.affiliation: b Genetics Laboratory, Institute of Biological Problems of the North , Russian Academy of Sciences , Magadan , Russia.
authors.forename: Andrey
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Litvinov
authors.affiliation: c Department of Forensic Medicine, Division of Molecular and Forensic Genetics, Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum, Faculty of Medicine , Nicolaus Copernicus University , Bydgoszcz , Poland.
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Skonieczna
authors.affiliation: c Department of Forensic Medicine, Division of Molecular and Forensic Genetics, Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum, Faculty of Medicine , Nicolaus Copernicus University , Bydgoszcz , Poland.
authors.forename: Urszula
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Rogalla
authors.affiliation: c Department of Forensic Medicine, Division of Molecular and Forensic Genetics, Ludwik Rydygier Collegium Medicum, Faculty of Medicine , Nicolaus Copernicus University , Bydgoszcz , Poland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Grzybowski
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering , University of Belgrade , Belgrade , Serbia.
authors.forename: Milena
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stevanovic
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Molecular Genetics and Genetic Engineering , University of Belgrade , Belgrade , Serbia.
authors.forename: Natasa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kovacevic-Grujicic
mesh_terms: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial / Q000235:genetics*; D014644:Genetic Variation; D054629:Genome, Mitochondrial; D006239:Haplotypes / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D055771:Serbia
chemical_list: D004272:DNA, Mitochondrial
keywords: Balkan Peninsula; Serbians; Slavs; coalescence age estimate; mtDNA super-haplogroup U