Abstract
The mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) has been used to trace population evolution and apply to forensic identification due to the characteristics including lack of recombination, higher copy number and matrilineal inheritance comparing with nuclear genome DNA. In this study, mtDNA control region sequences of 91 Kirgiz individuals from the Northwest region of China were sequenced to identify genetic polymorphisms and gain insight into the genetic background of the Kirgiz ethnic group. MtDNA control region sequences of Kirgiz individuals presented relatively high genetic polymorphisms. The 1,122 bp sequences of mtDNA control region could differ among unrelated Kirgiz individuals, which suggested the mtDNA control region sequences have a good maternal pedigree tracing capability among different Kirgiz individuals. The neutrality test, mismatch distribution, Bayesian phylogenetic inference, Bayesian skyline analysis, and the median network analyses showed that the Kirgiz group might occurred population expansion, and the expansion could be observed at about ∼53.41 kilo years ago (kya) when ancestries of modern humans began to thrive in Eurasia. The pairwise population comparisons, principal component analyses, and median network analyses were performed based on haplogroup frequencies or mtDNA control region sequences of 5,886 individuals from the Kirgiz group and the 48 reference populations all over the world. And the most homologous haplotypes were found between Kirgiz individuals and the East Asian individuals, which indicated that the Kirgiz group might have gene exchanges with the East Asian populations.
Highlights
The Kirgiz group is one of the official minority ethnic group in China
MtDNA control region sequences were detected from 91 unrelated Kirgiz individuals to analyzed the genetic background of Kirgiz group located in the Chinese Northwest region, and laid the foundation for the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) control region sequences in forensic practice applications and enriched the genetic information database of the Chinese populations
The Kirgiz group displayed relatively high genetic polymorphisms with the parameters including the number of haplotypes (h: 81), haplotype and nucleotide diversities (Hd:0.997 and Pi: 0.00842), and the average number of nucleotide differences (k:9.017) as Zimmermann said (Zimmermann et al, 2019)
Summary
The Kirgiz group is one of the official minority ethnic group in China. According to the seventh census, there are about 186 thousand Kirgiz individuals in China, which are mainly located in the Northwest China. Hundreds of Kirgiz individuals are settled in Chinese Heilongjiang Province. The Kirgizs speak Kepchak, which is a subgroup of the Turkic group of Altaic language family. In China, the history of the Kirgiz group can be traced back to the period of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty (109–91 BC), and since the Kirgizs have the appearance characteristics of both European and East Asian people according to the historical record (Gordon, 2009). Kirgiz ancestors gradually expanded geographically and spatially, and experienced the “Kigu”, “Pikasi”, and “Bulgari” periods successively during Tang Dynasty and Qing Dynasty (Abramzon and Tabyshaliev, 1990)
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