Abstract
The distribution of α1-antitrypsin (PI) alleles was studied in an attempt to elucidate migrations and admixture between populations in the Baltic Sea region. The frequency of the PI Z allele, a typically Northwesteuropean marker gene, showed a highly significant regional variation in the Baltic Sea region. The highest frequency (4.5%) was found in the western part of Latvia (Courland). The PI S allele, another marker of Westeuropean influence, also showed an increased frequency in the Courland population. These results indicate that among the populations east of the Baltic Sea the Curonian population has the most pronounced Westeuropean influence. Archaeological data have shown that from the 7th century and for several hundreds of years Courland received immigrations from mainland Sweden and the island of Gotland. We speculate that the increased frequencies of the PI Z alleles and S alleles in Courland may have been caused by these migrations.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 52-55 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Human Heredity |
Volume | 49 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jan 1999 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords*
- α-Antitrypsin (PI)
- Baltic sea region
- PI Z allele
Field of Science*
- 3.1 Basic medicine
- 3.2 Clinical medicine
Publication Type*
- 1.1. Scientific article indexed in Web of Science and/or Scopus database