Admixture estimates based on ABO, Rh and nine STRs in two Venezuelan regions

Area of Science:

• Population genetics
• Human evolution
• Forensic genetics

Background:

• Venezuelan population results from Native American, African, and European admixture.
• Limited admixture studies in Venezuela have utilized short tandem repeats (STRs).

Purpose of the Study:

• Estimate parental group contributions in Northern-Central and Central-Western Venezuelan regions.
• Analyze population structure and genetic diversity within Venezuela.

Main Methods:

• Utilized maximum likelihood and direct counts for ABO and Rh blood groups and nine STRs in 211 individuals.
• Applied Chakraborty's gene identity method for admixture estimation.
• Performed Neighbour-joining dendrograms and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) for population comparisons.

Main Results:

• Northern-Central Region: 37.7% European, 37.7% African, 24.6% Native American.
• Central-Western Region: 58.5% European, 16.5% African, 25.0% Native American.
• High European genetic component observed in both regions.

Conclusions:

• Most genetic systems were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, except for the Rh blood group in the Central-Western Region.
• Admixture analysis and population structure analyses (dendrogram, PCA) align, showing studied populations cluster with other admixed groups.
• European ancestry is a significant component across both studied Venezuelan regions.