Dataset Information

Genetic differentiation in East African ethnicities and its relationship with endurance running success.

ABSTRACT: Since the 1960s, East African athletes, mainly from Kenya and Ethiopia, have dominated long-distance running events in both the male and female categories. Further demographic studies have shown that two ethnic groups are overrepresented among elite endurance runners in each of these countries: the Kalenjin, from Kenya, and the Oromo, from Ethiopia, raising the possibility that this dominance results from genetic or/and cultural factors. However, looking at the life history of these athletes or at loci previously associated with endurance athletic performance, no compelling explanation has emerged. Here, we used a population approach to identify peaks of genetic differentiation for these two ethnicities and compared the list of genes close to these regions with a list, manually curated by us, of genes that have been associated with traits possibly relevant to endurance running in GWAS studies, and found a significant enrichment in both populations (Kalenjin, P = 0.048, and Oromo, P = 1.6x10-5). Those traits are mainly related to anthropometry, circulatory and respiratory systems, energy metabolism, and calcium homeostasis. Our results reinforce the notion that endurance running is a systemic activity with a complex genetic architecture, and indicate new candidate genes for future studies. Finally, we argue that a deterministic relationship between genetics and sports must be avoided, as it is both scientifically incorrect and prone to reinforcing population (racial) stereotyping.

SUBMITTER: Zani ALS

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9119534 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Genetic differentiation in East African ethnicities and its relationship with endurance running success.

Zani André L S ALS Gouveia Mateus H MH Aquino Marla M MM Quevedo Rodrigo R Menezes Rodrigo L RL Rotimi Charles C Lwande Gerald O GO Ouma Collins C Mekonnen Ephrem E Fagundes Nelson J R NJR

PloS one 20220519 5

Since the 1960s, East African athletes, mainly from Kenya and Ethiopia, have dominated long-distance running events in both the male and female categories. Further demographic studies have shown that two ethnic groups are overrepresented among elite endurance runners in each of these countries: the Kalenjin, from Kenya, and the Oromo, from Ethiopia, raising the possibility that this dominance results from genetic or/and cultural factors. However, looking at the life history of these athletes or ...[more]

PMID: 35588128

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Dataset Information

Genetic differentiation in East African ethnicities and its relationship with endurance running success.

Publications

Genetic differentiation in East African ethnicities and its relationship with endurance running success.

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