Indentured migration and differential gender gene flow: the origin and evolution of the East-Indian community of Limón, Costa Rica

Anthropological genetic insights on Caribbean population history

As the last American region settled by humans, yet the first to experience European colonization, the Caribbean islands have a complex history characterized by continuous migration, admixture, and demographic change. In the last 20 years, genetics research has transformed our understanding of Caribbean population history and revisited major debates in Caribbean anthropology, such as those surrounding the first peopling of the Antilles and the relationship between ancient Indigenous communities and present-day islanders. Genetics studies have also contributed novel perspectives for understanding pivotal events in Caribbean post-contact history such as European colonization, the Atlantic Slave Trade, and the Asian Indenture system. Here, I discuss the last 20 years of Caribbean genetics research and emphasize the importance of integrating genetics with interdisciplinary historic, archaeological, and anthropological approaches. Such interdisciplinary research is essential for investigating the dynamic history of the Caribbean and characterizing its impact on the biocultural diversity of present-day Caribbean peoples.

Interethnic admixture and the evolution of Latin American populations

A general introduction to the origins and history of Latin American populations is followed by a systematic review of the data from molecular autosomal assessments of the ethnic/continental (European, African, Amerindian) ancestries for 24 Latin American countries or territories. The data surveyed are of varying quality but provide a general picture of the present constitution of these populations. A brief discussion about the applications of these results (admixture mapping) is also provided. Latin American populations can be viewed as natural experiments for the investigation of unique anthropological and epidemiological issues.

Breast cancer survival in women of African descent living in the US and in the Caribbean: effect of place of birth

In order to shed light on genetic and environmental factors contributing to breast cancer health disparities, anonymous data from the cancer registry in Brooklyn, NY and two countries in the Caribbean, have been analyzed and compared. De-identified data were obtained on 3,710 women from three cancer registries in Brooklyn (New York), Guyana, and Trinidad, all having been diagnosed with breast cancer between 1995 and 2007, with follow-up through to early 2009. There was a significant difference in breast cancer survival according to race, place of birth, and place of residence. Women of African origin had a significantly worse survival than White women. Women born in the Caribbean had significantly worse survival in comparison to their counterpart born in the US, independently from their ethnic background (adjusted hazard ratio: 1.6; 95% CI: 1.2-2.1). A significant lower breast cancer survival was observed in African Caribbean women living in the Caribbean (HR: 1.8; 95% CI: 1.6-2.1) versus African-Caribbean women born in the Caribbean and living in the US (HR: 1.3; 95% CI 1.1-1.7), versus African-descent women born and living in the US. This study suggests that biological, behavioral, environmental, and clinical factors play a significant role in the observed difference in breast cancer outcome in women of Afro Caribbean descent.