GENETIC-STRUCTURE OF THE MANNE-DORA, A TRIBAL POPULATION OF ANDHRA-PRADESH

The Manne Dora, a small tribe inhabiting the north coastal districts o f Andhra Pradesh, South India, have been studied for 24 genetic marker s, including blood groups, plasma proteins, and red cell enzymes. A ge netic distance analysis was used to test whether this tribe was part o f another tribe, the Konda Dora, and to clarify its divergence from ot her tribal populations of Andhra Pradesh. The dendrogram and principal components analysis reveal clustering of the tribal populations in cl ose agreement with geographic distance. The study indicates that the M anne Dora may have been genetically part of the Konda Dora and separat ed only recently.