An investigation into the genetic structure of a Barbadian population

Abstract

The male-specific inheritance of the Y chromosome and the maternal passage of mitochondrial DNA (MtDNA) allow the genetic features of a population to be investigated. In this study a total of 81 bloodstains were characterized using 29 Y-chromosome specific single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and MtDNA. The ABI PRISM® SNaPshot™ Multiplex System (Applied Biosystems) was used to genotype the Y-SNPs and enabled the paternal characteristics of the population to be assessed. Sequencing of the control region of the mitochondrial DNA loop was carried out using the BigDye® Terminator v3.1 Cycle Sequencing Kit (Applied Biosystems). Haplogroup frequencies and genetic diversity values were calculated and compared to a less well defined UK-resident Afro-Caribbean population. It was found that the Barbados population studied was similar to other populations of African ancestry and it is proposed that further characterization may be possible using population specific SNPs. Historically, Ghana and Nigeria supplied Barbados with black labour during periods of slavery and it may be useful to first target these ancestral populations when attempting to further define the genetic features of Barbados.