Suitability of PCR methods for forensic investigation. Analysis of the 3'apoB VNTR system in an Italian population sample

Genetic variation at the ApoB 3' HVR minisatellite locus in the Mbenzele Pygmies from the Central African Republic

This study analyzes the polymorphic minisatellite ApoB 3' HVR in the Mbenzele Pygmies from the Central African Republic. A total of 14 alleles was observed, with frequencies ranging from 0.020 (19, 21, 27, and 45 repeat unit alleles) to 0.210 (37 repeat unit allele). Departure from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium was not statistically significant. The estimated heterozygosity was 0.874 +/- 0.016. Taking data from the literature into consideration, the results support the hypothesis that the Africans are different from non-Africans due to greater ApoB 3' HVR genetic diversity and a unimodal profile of ApoB 3' HVR allele frequency distribution. Interpopulational relationships were also analyzed using an F(ST) based genetic distance. The results highlight the similarity between the Mbenzele Pygmies and Bantu-speaking groups (Ewondo and Zulu), and the divergence between the Mbenzele and San, the two groups which are often considered to be the most direct descendants of proto-Africans. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 12:588-592, 2000. Copyright 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Analysis of the apolipoprotein B gene 3' hypervariable region among nationals of the Abu Dhabi Emirate and comparisons with other populations

BACKGROUND

Among all the polymorphic markers available to date, a hypervariable region located in the 3' of the human apolipoprotein B gene has been extensively studied in global populations throughout the world.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Using a polymerase chain reaction-based assay, we investigated the allele and genotype frequency distributions of the alleles (corresponding to repeats of a 30 base-pair core DNA sequence) of this hypervariable region in a group of 367 unrelated nationals (201 males, 166 females) from the United Arab Emirates.

RESULTS

We found 18 different alleles, ranging from 21 to 55 repeats, making up 51 genotypes that occurred in Hardy-Weinberg proportions and were associated with a heterozygosity index of 80.9%. The allele frequency distribution was different from that of other populations in that it was trimodal, with peaks at 31, 37 and 47 repeats, with corresponding relative frequencies of 16.1%, 25.1% and 6.0%. A four-allele model, which allowed comparisons with other reports, revealed distribution differences with all other ethnic groups except South Asians and Serbs.

CONCLUSION

This marker is very informative for the Emirati population, and will be very useful for UAE-specific DNA fingerprinting. It will also be a valuable tool for assessing the role of apolipoprotein B in cardiovascular diseases.

AMPFLP analysis of the VNTR loci D1S80 and ApoB in Hungary

Population data studies for D1S80 and ApoB were carried out on a caucasian population sample from Hungary of 229 and 222 unrelated individuals, respectively. We observed 26 different alleles for D1S80 and 13 for ApoB. The allele frequencies found are similar to those reported in the literature for European caucasians. No evidence of significant deviations from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were observed for both AMPFLP systems.