Mitochondrial genome analysis revises view of the initial peopling of North America

Contact: Peggy Calicchia
calicchi@cshl.edu
516-422-4012
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Mitochondrial genome analysis revises view of the initial peopling of North America June 29, 2010 – The initial peopling of North America from Asia occurred approximately 15,000-18,000 years ago, however estimations of the genetic diversity of the first settlers have remained inaccurate. In a report published online today in Genome Research (www.genome.org), researchers have found that the diversity of the first Americans has been significantly underestimated, underscoring the importance of comprehensive sampling for accurate analysis of human migrations.

Substantial evidence suggests that humans first crossed into North America from Asia over a land bridge called Beringia, connecting eastern Siberia and Alaska. Genetic studies have shed light on the initial lineages that entered North America, distinguishing the earliest Native American groups from those that arrived later. However, a clear picture of the number of initial migratory events and routes has been elusive due to incomplete analysis.

In this work, an international group of researchers coordinated by Antonio Torroni of the University of Pavia in Italy performed a detailed mitochondrial genome analysis of a poorly characterized lineage known as C1d. Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is passed down through the maternal lineage, and mtDNA sequence markers are extremely useful tools for mapping ancestry. Similar to other haplogroups that were among the first to arrive in North America, C1d is distributed throughout the continent, suggesting that it may have been also present in the initial founding populations. However, C1d has not been well represented in previous genetic analyses, and the estimated age of approximately 7,000 years, much younger than the other founding haplogroups, was likely inaccurate.

To resolve these inconsistent lines of evidence, the group sequenced and analyzed 63 C1d mtDNA genomes from throughout the Americas. This high-resolution study not only confirmed that C1d was one of the founding lineages in North America 15,000 to 18,000 years ago, but revealed another critical insight. "These first female American founders carried not one but two different C1d genomes," said Ugo Perego of the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation and primary author of the study, "thus further increasing the number of recognized maternal lineages from Beringia."

These findings raise the number of founding maternal lineages in North America to fifteen. Furthermore, this work emphasizes the critical need for comprehensive analysis of relevant populations to gather a complete picture of migratory events.

Alessandro Achilli of the University of Perugia, a coauthor of the report, suggests that the number of distinct mitochondrial genomes that passed from Asian into North America is probably much higher. "These yet undiscovered maternal lineages will be identified within the next three to four years," Achilli noted, "when the methodological approach that we used in our study will be systematically applied."

Scientists from the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (Salt Lake City, UT), the University of Pavia (Pavia, Italy), the University of Perugia (Perugia, Italy), the University of Santiago de Compostela, (Santiago de Compostela, Spain), Innsbruck Medical University (Innsbruck, Austria), and the University of Beunos Aries (Buenos Aires, Argentina).

This work was supported by the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Fundación de Investigación Médica Mutua Madrileña, the FWF Austrian Science Fund, Progetti Ricerca Interesse Nazionale (Italian Ministry of the University), and Fondazione Alma Mater Ticinensis.

Ugo Perego is available for more information by contacting Jacob Moon at the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation Public Relations Office (+1-801-490-1017; jacob@methodcommunications.com). Antonio Torroni, PhD is available for more information by contacting Grazia Bruttocao at the University of Pavia Press Office (+39-0382-984531, grazia.bruttocao@unipv.it). Alessandro Achilli, PhD is available for more information by contacting Laura Marozzi at the University of Perugia Press Office (+39-075-585-2202, lmarozzi@unipg.it).

Interested reporters may obtain copies of the manuscript from Peggy Calicchia, Editorial Secretary, Genome Research (calicchi@cshl.edu; +1-516-422-4012).

The manuscript will be published online ahead of print on June 29, 2010. Its full citation is as follows: Perego UA, Angerhofer N, Pala M, Olivieri A, Lancioni H, Hooshiar Kashani B, Carossa V, Ekins JE, Gómez-Carballa A, Huber G, Zimmermann B, Corach D, Babudri N, Panara F, Myres NM, Parson W, Semino O, Salas A, Woodward SR, Achilli A, Torroni A. The initial peopling of the Americas: A growing number of founding mitochondrial genomes from Beringia. Genome Res doi:10.1101/gr.109231.110.

Launched in 1995, Genome Research (www.genome.org) is an international, continuously published, peer-reviewed journal that focuses on research that provides novel insights into the genome biology of all organisms, including advances in genomic medicine. Among the topics considered by the journal are genome structure and function, comparative genomics, molecular evolution, genome-scale quantitative and population genetics, proteomics, epigenomics, and systems biology. The journal also features exciting gene discoveries and reports of cutting-edge computational biology and high-throughput methodologies.

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is a private, nonprofit institution in New York that conducts research in cancer and other life sciences and has a variety of educational programs. Its Press, originating in 1933, is the largest of the Laboratory's five education divisions and is a publisher of books, journals, and electronic media for scientists, students, and the general public.

Genome Research issues press releases to highlight significant research studies that are published in the journal.

Back atcha.

You know what? I believe that G-d is far more than the little old guy with the gray beard that everyone seems to belittle it with.
Creation, once begun, moves ONLY forward. Never backward. It never stops and it has been going on for far longer than the lenses that science has developed will allow them to see.
No one can say they believe in G-d and then try to limit it to our own inability to comprehend the reality of it. We can’t substitute our own conception of the truth and call it truth because that says to me that you don’t REALLY believe in G-d at all. Only YOUR conception, small as it is, of G-d and therefore, of Creation itself.

PS, not YOU as in you personally. Generic you.

Sorry but the fossil and arce record indicates a migration down the land bridge from Asia to South America. Yes, there is evidence that others came by other routes and methods but the primary migration path is down the West Coast. BTW I am not a strict creationist. I am more prone to believe outside influences moved man around. However, you cannot ignore this DNA when correlated with known populations it is very powerful.

Growing up, I knew a couple of kids from parents with this situation; at least one of them had to have a blood change at birth.

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