Allele Frequencies of Eight Short Tandem Repeat Loci in Three Visayas Regional Populations of the Philippines

• Published in: Journal of forensic sciences 2002-11, Vol.47 (6), p.1397-1398
• Main Authors: Tabbada, KA, Magno, MMF, Delfin, FC, Calacal, GC, Tan, M, C-Ferreon, J, Halos, SC, De Ungria, MCA
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alleles; DNA Fingerprinting - methods; Gene Frequency; Genetics, Population; Humans; Philippines; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Tandem Repeat Sequences
• ISSN: 0022-1198; 1556-4029
• DOI: 10.1520/JFS15582J

The Philippine Archipelago, composed of 7,100 islands and more than 70 ethno-linguistic groups, is divided into 15 regions on the basis of geographical, cultural, and political variations. Each region is classified under three major island groups: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The National Capital Region (NCR) is situated south of Luzon, and its population genetic database has been reported (1). However, because the NCR is geographically separated by sea from the rest of the island groups, and because each island group has its own distinct cultural identity, there is a need to study and compare the genetic composition of other regional populations to that of NCR. The present study reports population data at eight short tandem repeat (STR) loci, namely HUMvWA, HUMCSF1PO, HUMTH01, HUMTPOX, HUMF13A01, HUMFES/ FPS, HUMFOLP23, and D8S306 for the Visayas. Visayas refers to the central group of islands in the Philippine Archipelago, where the major language spoken is the Visaya or Bisaya, instead of the more common Filipino (Tagalog) language. It is composed of three political regions, namely, Region VI, VII, and VIII. Blood samples were collected in Region VI (Aklan, Iloilo, n = 114), Region VII (Cebu, n = 140), and Region VIII (Leyte, n = 92) and blotted on FITZCO FTA™ cards. Genomic DNA was purified according to manufacturer's instructions (Flinder's Technology, Massachusetts). PCR amplification was performed as described previously (1). Amplified products were detected with the ALFExpress sequencer and using ALFwin and Allelelinks software (Pharmacia Biotech) using automated flourescence technology. Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) and linkage equilibrium (LE) were checked by the Exact Test using the DNA View software (2). Homogeneity tests were performed using Popgene ver 1.32 (3).