A genetic chronology for the Indian Subcontinent points to heavily sex-biased dispersals

BMC Evolutionary Biology

Research Article

Bob Hudson¹  James F. Wilson²  Ross M. Fraser³  Maria Pala⁴  Martin B. Richards⁴  Ceiridwen Edwards⁴  Francesca Gandini⁴  Marina Silva⁴  Daniel Vieira⁵  Pedro Soares⁶  John Koch⁷  Marisa Oliveira⁸  Andreia Brandão⁸  Luísa Pereira⁸  Joana B. Pereira⁸  Teresa Rito⁹ 

[1] Archaeology Department, University of Sydney, 2006, Sydney, NSW, Australia;Centre for Global Health Research, Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, University of Edinburgh, Teviot Place, EH8 9AG, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;MRC Human Genetics Unit, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, EH4 2XU, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;Centre for Global Health Research, Usher Institute of Population Health Sciences and Informatics, University of Edinburgh, Teviot Place, EH8 9AG, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK;Synpromics Ltd, Nine Edinburgh Bioquarter, EH16 4UX, Edinburgh, UK;Department of Biological Sciences, School of Applied Sciences, University of Huddersfield, Queensgate, HD1 3DH, Huddersfield, UK;Department of Informatics, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal;CBMA (Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology), Department of Biology, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal;IPATIMUP (Instituto de Patologia e Imunologia Molecular da Universidade do Porto), Rua Júlio Amaral de Carvalho 45, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal;CBMA (Centre of Molecular and Environmental Biology), Department of Biology, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal;University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, SY23 3HH, Wales, UK;i3S (Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto), R. Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal;IPATIMUP (Instituto de Patologia e Imunologia Molecular da Universidade do Porto), Rua Júlio Amaral de Carvalho 45, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal;i3S (Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto), R. Alfredo Allen 208, 4200-135, Porto, Portugal;Life and Health Sciences Research Institute (ICVS), School of Health Sciences, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal;ICVS/3B’s—PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal;

关键词: Mitochondrial DNA;    Indian Subcontinent;    Genome-wide;    Y chromosome;    Neolithic;    Indo-European;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12862-017-0936-9

 received in 2016-12-15, accepted in 2017-03-14,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundIndia is a patchwork of tribal and non-tribal populations that speak many different languages from various language families. Indo-European, spoken across northern and central India, and also in Pakistan and Bangladesh, has been frequently connected to the so-called “Indo-Aryan invasions” from Central Asia ~3.5 ka and the establishment of the caste system, but the extent of immigration at this time remains extremely controversial. South India, on the other hand, is dominated by Dravidian languages. India displays a high level of endogamy due to its strict social boundaries, and high genetic drift as a result of long-term isolation which, together with a very complex history, makes the genetic study of Indian populations challenging.ResultsWe have combined a detailed, high-resolution mitogenome analysis with summaries of autosomal data and Y-chromosome lineages to establish a settlement chronology for the Indian Subcontinent. Maternal lineages document the earliest settlement ~55–65 ka (thousand years ago), and major population shifts in the later Pleistocene that explain previous dating discrepancies and neutrality violation. Whilst current genome-wide analyses conflate all dispersals from Southwest and Central Asia, we were able to tease out from the mitogenome data distinct dispersal episodes dating from between the Last Glacial Maximum to the Bronze Age. Moreover, we found an extremely marked sex bias by comparing the different genetic systems.ConclusionsMaternal lineages primarily reflect earlier, pre-Holocene processes, and paternal lineages predominantly episodes within the last 10 ka. In particular, genetic influx from Central Asia in the Bronze Age was strongly male-driven, consistent with the patriarchal, patrilocal and patrilineal social structure attributed to the inferred pastoralist early Indo-European society. This was part of a much wider process of Indo-European expansion, with an ultimate source in the Pontic-Caspian region, which carried closely related Y-chromosome lineages, a smaller fraction of autosomal genome-wide variation and an even smaller fraction of mitogenomes across a vast swathe of Eurasia between 5 and 3.5 ka.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017