Uniparental markers of contemporary Italian population reveals details on its pre-Roman heritage.

ABSTRACT:

Background

According to archaeological records and historical documentation, Italy has been a melting point for populations of different geographical and ethnic matrices. Although Italy has been a favorite subject for numerous population genetic studies, genetic patterns have never been analyzed comprehensively, including uniparental and autosomal markers throughout the country.

Methods/principal findings

A total of 583 individuals were sampled from across the Italian Peninsula, from ten distant (if homogeneous by language) ethnic communities--and from two linguistic isolates (Ladins, Grecani Salentini). All samples were first typed for the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region and selected coding region SNPs (mtSNPs). This data was pooled for analysis with 3,778 mtDNA co

SUBMITTER: Brisighelli F 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3519480 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature