Genetic ancestry of different ethnic groups varies across the United States
2014-12-18
(Press-News.org) The United States is a melting pot of different racial and ethnic groups, but it has not been clear how the genetic ancestry of these populations varies across different geographic regions. In a landmark study published by Cell Press December 18th in the American Journal of Human Genetics, researchers analyzed the genomes of more than 160,000 African Americans, Latinos, and European Americans, providing novel insights into the subtle differences in genetic ancestry across the United States.
"Our study not only reveals the historical underpinnings of regional differences in genetic ancestry but also sheds light on the complex relationships between genetic ancestry and self-identified race and ethnicity," says lead study author Katarzyna Bryc of 23andMe and Harvard Medical School.
Over the past 500 years, North America has been the site of ongoing mixing of Native Americans, European settlers, and Africans. Although much of the world has been genetically characterized, the United States has received less attention from population geneticists because of its complex ancestry patterns. Moreover, the relationship between genetic ancestry and self-described racial and ethnic identities in each region of the United States has not been deeply characterized.
To address this gap in knowledge, Bryc and her collaborators analyzed DNA sequence variations called single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the genomes of 5,269 self-described African Americans, 8,663 Latinos, and 148,789 European Americans. These individuals actively participate in 23andMe research by submitting saliva samples, consenting for data to be used for research, and completing surveys. 23andMe is a personal genomics company that provides direct-to-consumer genetic testing and services that include the analysis of DNA samples to generate ancestry-related genetic reports.
The researchers found that regional ancestry differences reflect historical events such as waves of immigration. For example, Scandinavian ancestry is found in trace proportions in most states but comprises about 10% of ancestry in European Americans living in Minnesota and the Dakotas. They also found that individuals identify roughly with the majority of their genetic ancestry, contrary to expectations under a social "one-drop rule." Indeed, more than six million Americans who self-identify as European might carry African ancestry, and as many as five million self-described European Americans might have at least 1% Native American ancestry.
"These findings suggest that many individuals with partial African and Native American ancestry have 'passed' into the white community, thereby undermining the use of cultural labels that separate individuals into discrete, non-overlapping groups," Bryc says. "Taken together, our results suggest that genetic ancestry can be leveraged to augment historical records and inform cultural processes shaping modern populations."
INFORMATION:
American Journal of Human Genetics, Bryc et al.: "The genetic ancestry of African, Latino, and European Americans across the United States."
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
2014-12-18
It's no secret that people are judgmental, and young children are no exception. When children witness "good" or "bad" behavior, their brains show an immediate emotional response. But, according to a study appearing in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on December 18, it takes more than that kind of automatic moral evaluation for kids to act with generosity and share their stickers.
By recording kids' brain activity, the study found that generous behavior requires a controlled thought process. The neurodevelopmental findings are the first to link implicit moral evaluations ...
2014-12-18
Golden-winged warblers apparently knew in advance that a storm that would spawn 84 confirmed tornadoes and kill at least 35 people last spring was coming, according to a report in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on December 18. The birds left the scene well before devastating supercell storms blew in.
The discovery was made quite by accident while researchers were testing whether the warblers, which weigh "less than two nickels," could carry geolocators on their backs. It turns out they can, and much more. With a big storm brewing, the birds took off from their ...
2014-12-18
Many recent studies showed that calorie restrictions reduce the incidence of cancer, whereas high-calorie diets cause obesity and diabetes, both of which increase the risk of developing cancers. However, tumor biology still hides complex mechanisms, as revealed by researchers from the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland. In a study published in Cell Metabolism, scientists not only found the unexpected benefit that a change of diet had on certain types of lung cancer, they also deciphered the molecular mechanism underlying this dietary effect ...
2014-12-18
Berkeley -- When birds unexpectedly flee their nesting grounds, it may be a demonstration of Mother Nature's early-warning system that a massive storm is approaching.
While tracking a population of golden-winged warblers, a research team led by ecologist Henry Streby at the University of California, Berkeley, discovered that birds in the mountains of eastern Tennessee fled their breeding grounds one to two days ahead of the arrival of powerful supercell storms. The storm system swept through the central and southern United States in late April 2014, generating 84 confirmed ...
2014-12-18
This news release is available in Japanese. Behind all motor, sensory and memory functions, calcium ions are in the brain, making those functions possible. Yet neuroscientists do not entirely understand how fast calcium ions reach their targets inside neurons, and how that timing changes neural signaling. Researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University have determined how the distance from calcium channels to calcium sensors on vesicles affects a neuron's signaling precision and efficacy. In international collaboration with research ...
2014-12-18
Climate change impacts will require major but very uncertain transformations of global agriculture systems by mid-century, according to new research from the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis.
Climate change will require major transformations in agricultural systems, including increased irrigation and moving production from one region to another, according to the new study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters. However without careful planning for uncertain climate impacts, the chances of getting adaptation wrong are high, the study ...
2014-12-18
PASADENA, Calif., December 18, 2014 -- Self-reported moderate to vigorous exercise was associated with lower blood pressure and blood glucose levels in a Kaiser Permanente study published in the journal Preventing Chronic Disease. Data collected from Kaiser Permanente's Exercise as a Vital Sign (EVS) program, in which medical office staff asks patients about their exercise habits at every health care visit, revealed associations between moderate to vigorous exercise and improved measures of cardiometabolic health for both men and women. Few previous studies have examined ...
2014-12-18
The part of the brain that tells us the direction to travel when we navigate has been identified by UCL scientists, and the strength of its signal predicts how well people can navigate.
It has long been known that some people are better at navigating than others, but until now it has been unclear why. The latest study, funded by the Wellcome Trust and published in Current Biology, shows that the strength and reliability of 'homing signals' in the human brain vary among people and can predict navigational ability.
In order to successfully navigate to a destination, you ...
2014-12-18
VIDEO:
Research from Univ. of Iowa and Russian scientists show crows are capable of executive-level thinking.
Click here for more information.
Crows have long been heralded for their high intelligence - they can remember faces, use tools and communicate in sophisticated ways.
But a newly published study finds crows also have the brain power to solve higher-order, relational-matching tasks, and they can do so spontaneously. That means crows join humans, apes and monkeys in exhibiting ...
2014-12-18
TORONTO -- Very small segments of genes called "microexons" influence how proteins interact with each other in the nervous system, scientists at the University of Toronto have found, opening up a new line of research into the cause of autism.
The researchers found that microexons are used in neurons by alternative splicing, a process in which a single gene can produce many different proteins. Microexons are pasted -- or spliced -- into gene messengers (mRNAs) to generate forms of proteins that the nervous system needs to function properly. Misregulation of this process, ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
[Press-News.org] Genetic ancestry of different ethnic groups varies across the United States
