Assessment of Azorean ancestry by Alu insertion polymorphisms

Knowledge of population ancestry from genetic markers is essential, for example, to understand the history of human migration and to carry out admixture and association studies. Here we assess the genome ancestry of the Azorean population through analysis of six Alu polymorphic sites (TPA-25, ACE, APO, B65, PV92, and D1) in 65 Azoreans and 30 Portuguese unrelated blood donors and compare data for the Y-chromosome and mtDNA. Allele frequencies were calculated by direct counting. Statistical analysis was performed using Arlequin 2.0. Nei's genetic distance was calculated with DISPAN software, and trees were constructed by neighbor joining (NJ) using PHYLIP 3.63. The results show that all Alu insertions were polymorphic. APO is the closest to fixation. The less frequent insertions are PV92 and D1 in the Azores and Portugal, respectively. ACE and TPA-25 show the highest values of heterozygosity in both populations. Allele frequencies are very similar to those obtained in European populations. These results are validated by the Y-chromosome and mtDNA data, where the majority of the maternal and paternal lineages are European. Overall, these data are reflected in the phylogenetic tree, in which the Azoreans and the Portuguese branch with Catalans, Andalusians, Moroccans, and Algerians. We conclude that the population of the Azores shows no significant genetic differences from that of mainland Portugal and that it is an outbred population. Moreover, the data validate the use of Alu insertion polymorphisms to assess the origin and history of human populations.