ALLELE FREQUENCIES FOR 20 MICROSATELLITES IN A WORLDWIDE POPULATION SURVEY

20 microsatellite polymorphisms: HUMHPRT, HUMD3S1358, HUMTH01, HUMACPP , HUMVWF, HUMD16S310, HUMD4S243, HUMTPO, HUMFES/FPS, HUMF13A1, HUMDHFR P2, HUMD11S2010, HUMD13S767, HUMD9S926, HUMD2S1328, HUMD14S306, HUMD18 S848, HUMD5S818, HUMD7S820 and HUMFGA were analyzed in a worldwide sur vey covering five continents and allele frequencies are given. There i s a high heterogeneity in allele frequencies among continents. A neigh bor-joining tree based on Fst distance shows a pattern of differentiat ion that may reflect the role of drift in the development of genetic d ifferences among humans. The variation found between continents confir ms the usefulness of tetranucleotide microsatellites in human genetic variation studies.