Y-chromosome specific YCAII, DYS19 and YAP polymorphisms in human populations: a comparative study

Two hypervariable Y-specific markers, the YCAII and DUSTS STRs, and the mor e stable Y Alu Polymorphism (YAP) have been analysed in about 1400 individu als of 21 different populations, mainly from Europe but also from the Middl e East, Africa and Asia. On the basis of the frequency distributions of the se three Y-markers we compare, using different statistical analyses, their power in detecting population genetic structure and in distinguishing close ly related groups. The pattern of populations' genetic affinities inferred from the three markers considered altogether suggests a strong genetic stru cture that, with a few exceptions, broadly corresponds to the linguistic re latedness and/or geographic location of the sampled populations.