Uniparental Genetic Heritage of Belarusians: Encounter of Rare Middle Eastern Matrilineages with a Central European Mitochondrial DNA Pool

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066499
• Publication Date: 2013-06-13T21:14:20Z
• Authors: Alena Kushniarevich; Larysa Sivitskaya; Nina Danilenko; Tadeush Novogrodskii; Iosif Tsybovsky; Anna Kiseleva; Svetlana Kotova; Gyaneshwer Chaubey; Ene Metspalu; Hovhannes Sahakyan; Ardeshir Bahmanimehr; Maere Reidla; Siiri Rootsi; Jüri Parik; Tuuli Reisberg; Alessandro Achilli; Baharak Hooshiar ...; Francesca Gandini; Anna Olivieri; Doron M. Behar; Antonio Torroni; Oleg Davydenko; Richard Villems
• Keywords: Haplogroup; Gene pool; Population Genetics

Ethnic Belarusians make up more than 80% of the nine and half million people inhabiting Republic Belarus. together with Ukrainians Russians represent East Slavic linguistic group, largest both in numbers territory, Europe alongside Baltic-, Finno-Permic- Turkic-speaking people. Till date, only a limited number low resolution genetic studies have been performed on this population. Therefore, phylogeographic analysis 565 Y-chromosomes 267 mitochondrial DNAs from six well covered geographic sub-regions Belarus we strove to complement existing profile eastern Europeans. Our results reveal that around paternal Belarusian gene pool is composed R1a, I2a N1c Y-chromosome haplogroups – which very similar two other European populations Russians. The maternal encompasses full range West Eurasian agrees structure central-east populations. data attest latitudinal gradients characterize variation uniparentally transmitted pools modern Belarusians. In particular, reflects movements Europe, starting probably as early beginning Holocene. Furthermore, matrilineal legacy retains rare DNA haplogroups, N1a3 N3, whose phylogeographies were explored detail after de novo sequencing 20 13 complete mitogenomes, respectively, all over Eurasia. analyses lineages, N3 N1a3, Middle Eastern origin, might mark distinct events flow Europe: during mid-Holocene period Pleistocene-Holocene transition, respectively.