Analysis of five Y-specific microsatellite loci in Asian and Pacific populations

We have analyzed five Y-specific microsatellite loci (DYS388, DYS390, DYS39 1, DYS394, DYS395) in 17 Asian and Pacific populations representing a broad geographical area and different linguistic families, with an emphasis on p opulations from mainland and insular Southeast Asia. Analysis of gene diver sity indicates that several of the studied populations have experienced sub stantial genetic isolation, and a reduction in male effective sizes (viz, t he Northeast Indian populations Nishi, Adi and the Taiwanese aboriginals). The average values of the F-ST and ((ST) statistics indicate a high degree of genetic differentiation among these populations at the five Y-specific m arkers (F-ST = 0.21 and ((ST) = 0.33, based on individual loci; F-ST = 0.09 and ((ST) = 0.36, based on haplotypes), which conform to the expectation o f a fourfold smaller effective size of the Y-linked loci compared with the autosomal loci. Dendrogram and principal coordinates analysis, with few exc eptions, show a major separation between mainland and insular populations. Among the mainland populations, the Tibeto-Burman speakers from Northeast I ndia cluster in a well-defined group, supported by high bootstrap values. T he Southern Chinese, Northern Thai, So, and Cambodian also are integral to this cluster. The other major cluster is rather heterogeneous and includes, among others, the Austronesian-speaking populations. The Samoans of the Pa cific, with a distinctive pattern of allelic distributions, stand as an out lier in the tree and PC representations. Although trends of genetic affinit ies among ethnically and geographically related populations are evident fro m the Y-specific microsatellite data, microsatellites are not optimal for d eciphering complex migratory patterns of human populations, which could pos sibly be clarified by using additional and more stable genetic markers. (C) 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.