Mortality, Inbreeding, Genetic Load in Rellis : A Subdivided Population of Andhra Pradesh, India

We have studied the effects of inbreeding on fertility and mortality for 89 Chachati Relli, and 132 Kapu Relli couples with different hemoglobin genotypes. The frequency of consanguineous marriages is higher in Chachati Relli than in Kapu Relli. The effect of inbreeding is clearly evident in the mortality of offspring of AA x AA and AA x AS matings in Chachati Relli and AA x AA matings in Kapu Relli, possibly due to homozygosity for recessive lethals. However, the mortality rates for AS x AS inbred couples in the two sub populations were less than for non-inbred couples, possibly due to prenatal selection against recessive lethals. The low value of the B/A ratio in Chachati Relli suggests that the genetic load is segregational while the negative B value in Kapu Relli is attributed to reduced mortality in different inbred groups