mtDNA Variation among Greenland Eskimos: The Edge of the Beringian Expansion

The Eskimo-Aleut language phylum is distributed from coastal Siberia across Alaska and Canada to Greenland and is well distinguished from the neighboring Na Dene languages. Genetically, however, the distinction between Na Dene and Eskimo-Aleut speakers is less clear. In order to improve the genetic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American journal of human genetics 2000-09, Vol.67 (3), p.718-726
Main Authors: Saillard, Juliette, Forster, Peter, Lynnerup, Niels, Bandelt, Hans-Jürgen, Nørby, Søren
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Alaska - ethnology
Anthropology. Demography
Base Sequence
Biological and medical sciences
DNA, Mitochondrial - genetics
Emigration and Immigration
Founder Effect
Genetic Variation - genetics
Geography
Greenland - ethnology
Human physiology applied to population studies and life conditions. Human ecophysiology
Humans
Inuits - genetics
Kinetics
Linguistics
Medical sciences
Mutagenesis - genetics
Phylogeny
Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
Sample Size
Time Factors
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Summary:The Eskimo-Aleut language phylum is distributed from coastal Siberia across Alaska and Canada to Greenland and is well distinguished from the neighboring Na Dene languages. Genetically, however, the distinction between Na Dene and Eskimo-Aleut speakers is less clear. In order to improve the genetic characterization of Eskimos in general and Greenlanders in particular, we have sequenced hypervariable segment I (HVS-I) of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region and typed relevant RFLP sites in the mtDNA of 82 Eskimos from Greenland. A comparison of our data with published sequences demonstrates major mtDNA types shared between Na Dene and Eskimo, indicating a common Beringian history within the Holocene. We further confirm the presence of an Eskimo-specific mtDNA subgroup characterized by nucleotide position 16265G within mtDNA group A2. This subgroup is found in all Eskimo groups analyzed so far and is estimated to have originated
ISSN:0002-9297
1537-6605
DOI:10.1086/303038