Genetic portrait of Lisboa immigrant population from Cabo Verde with mitochondrial DNA analysis.

Abstract

Cabo Verde is a group of 10 volcanic islands and several uninhabited islets located on the west African coast and belongs to a group of four archipelagos located in the Atlantic Ocean (Acores, Madeira, Islas Canarias and Cabo Verde), namedMacaronesia. The Portuguese colonization began soon after the discovery of the archipelago in 1460 with Santiago and Fogo being the first islands to be populated. The first settlers arrived in 1462 on the island of Santiago and were an assortment of Portuguese nobles, Jews, exiles and convicts (Willie 2001). Cabo Verde remained a colony of the Portuguese Colonial Empire until 1975 when the independence was proclaimed and the country became formally an independent nation. In the 19th century, drought and famine promoted strong migration movements between the isles of the archipelago and other regions. Migration is present in the historic and social reality of Cabo Verde archipelago since the establishment of its society. According to the 2008 survey released by the Cabo Verde National Institute of Statistics, the country had about 500,000 inhabitants. Conjointly with Europe, the immigrant population of Portugal and particularly Lisboa, is clearly increasing. This migration contributes not only increase in the number of inhabitants, but also to increase the social, cultural,