Frequency of a 9-bp deletion in the mitochondrial DNA among Asian populations

Individuals of the following Asian populations were surveyed for the presence of a 9-base-pair deletion of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA): Ainu, Japanese, Korean, Negrito, and Vedda. Although the variation was detected in every population except the Vedda, the frequencies of the variation differed widely among the populations, suggesting a geographic cline.