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Forensic and phylogeographic characterization of mtDNA lineages from northern Thailand (Chiang Mai)

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Abstract

The immigration of diverse ethnic groups over the past centuries from surrounding countries into Thailand left footprints in the genetic composition of Thai mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) lineages. The entire mtDNA control region (1,122 bp) was typed in 190 unrelated male volunteers from the northern Thailand province of Chiang Mai following highest quality standards. For a more precise haplogroup classification, selected single nucleotide polymorphisms from the mtDNA coding region were genotyped. We found several new, so far undescribed mtDNA lineages. Quasi-median networks were constructed for visualisation of character conflicts. The data were put into population-genetic relationships with other Southeast Asian populations. Although the frequencies of the Thai haplogroups were characteristic for Southeast Asia in terms of haplotype composition and genetic structure, the Thai population was significantly different from other Southeast Asian populations. This necessitates establishing regional databases, especially for forensic applications. The population data have been submitted to the EMPOP database (www.empop.org) and will be available on publication.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Gabriela Huber and Daniela Niederwieser for excellent technical assistance (Institute of Legal Medicine, Innsbruck Medical University). The study was supported by the FWF Austrian Science Fund Translational Research Programme (L397).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Legal Medicine, Innsbruck Medical University, Müllerstrasse 44, Innsbruck, Austria

    Bettina Zimmermann, Martin Bodner, Sylvain Amory, Liane Fendt & Walther Parson

  2. Laboratory of Molecular Anthropobiology, Institute of Legal Medicine, Strasbourg, France

    Sylvain Amory

  3. International Commission on Missing Persons, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

    Sylvain Amory

  4. Institute of Mathematics, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria

    Alexander Röck

  5. Pathologisches Institut, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany

    David Horst

  6. Department of Surgical Pathology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Basil Horst

  7. Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand

    Torpong Sanguansermsri

  8. Division of Genetic Epidemiology, Department of Medical Genetics, Molecular and Clinical Pharmacology, Innsbruck Medical University, Schöpfstrasse 41, Innsbruck, Austria

    Anita Brandstätter

Authors
  1. Bettina Zimmermann
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  2. Martin Bodner
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  3. Sylvain Amory
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  4. Liane Fendt
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  5. Alexander Röck
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  6. David Horst
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  7. Basil Horst
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  8. Torpong Sanguansermsri
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  9. Walther Parson
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  10. Anita Brandstätter
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Walther Parson or Anita Brandstätter.

Electronic supplememtary material

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Supplementary Material

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Table S2

Control region sequences and coding region single nucleotide polymorphisms in the Thai dataset (n = 190). (XLS 85.5 kb)

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Zimmermann, B., Bodner, M., Amory, S. et al. Forensic and phylogeographic characterization of mtDNA lineages from northern Thailand (Chiang Mai). Int J Legal Med 123, 495–501 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-009-0373-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00414-009-0373-4

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