Open AccessPopulation studies in northern Sweden
Author(s) -
BECKMAN L.,
CEDERGREN B.,
COLLINDER E.,
RASMUSON M.
Publication year - 1972
Publication title -
hereditas
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.819
H-Index - 50
eISSN - 1601-5223
pISSN - 0018-0661
DOI - 10.1111/j.1601-5223.1972.tb01042.x
Subject(s) - inbreeding , biology , abo blood group system , demography , population , genetic drift , genetics , genetic variation , gene , sociology
Regional and temporal variations in the ABO and Rh blood group gene frequencies were studied in the county of Västerbotten in northern Sweden. The total material, comprising blood group data for about 60,000 individuals was divided by place of birth (14 subregions) and date of birth (9 periods ranging from 1870 to 1967). A significant regional heterogeneity was found for all genes investigated. This regional variation is apparently caused by ethnic heterogeneity and genetic drift in combination. The coefficient of inbreeding measuring regional differentiation (F ST ) was estimated in the different time periods. F ST had its highest value in the period 1931–1940 and decreased significantly in later periods. The decrease in inbreeding since 1940 has been estimated to cause about a 50 per cent decrease in the frequency of recessive diseases.