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Genetic structure of the K uwaiti population revealed by paternal lineages
Author(s) -
TrikiFendri Soumaya,
SánchezDiz Paula,
ReyGonzález Danel,
Alfadhli Suad,
Ayadi Imen,
Ben Marzoug Riadh,
Carracedo Ángel,
Rebai Ahmed
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
american journal of human biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.559
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1520-6300
pISSN - 1042-0533
DOI - 10.1002/ajhb.22773
Subject(s) - evolutionary biology , biology , population , genetics , demography , geography , sociology
Objective We analyzed the Y‐chromosome haplogroup diversity in the Kuwaiti population to gain a more complete overview of its genetic landscape. Method A sample of 117 males from the Kuwaiti population was studied through the analysis of 22 Y‐SNPs. The results were then interpreted in conjunction with those of other populations from the Middle East, South Asia, North and East Africa, and East Europe. Results The analyzed markers allowed the discrimination of 19 different haplogroups with a diversity of 0.7713. J‐M304 was the most frequent haplogroup in the Kuwaiti population (55.5%) followed by E‐M96 (18%). They revealed a genetic homogeneity between the Kuwaiti population and those of the Middle East ( F ST = 6.1%, P ‐value < 0.0001), although a significant correlation between genetic and geographic distances was found ( r = 0.41, P ‐value = 0.009). Moreover, the nonsignificant pairwise F ST genetic distances between the Kuwait population on the one hand and the Arabs of Iran and those of Sudan on the other, corroborate the hypothesis of bidirectional gene flow between Arabia and both Iran and Sudan. Conclusion Overall, we have revealed that the Kuwaiti population has experienced significant gene flow from neighboring populations like Saudi Arabia, Iran, and East Africa. Therefore, we have confirmed that the population of Kuwait is genetically coextensive with those of the Middle East. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 28:203–212, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.