Y-chromosome STR haplotype diversity in Brazilian populations

A sample of 198 unrelated males distributed among the five geopolitical regions in Brazil were typed for the minimal YSTR haplotype composed of microsatellite loci DYS19, DYS385I/II, DYS389I, DYS389II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392 and DYS393. Gene frequency data, gene diversity, haplotype diversity and power of discrimination were estimated. An AMOVA indicated that 99.97% of the haplotypic variation is found within regions and only a small 0.03% and non significant variation is found among the five regions (Fst ¼ 0.00031, P-value ¼ 0.43). This result suggests that a single national database of Y-STR haplotypes can be used in the quantitative assessment of matches in forensic casework in the Brazilian population. A significant haplotype diversity of 99.8% was found and 172 different haplotypes were observed in 198 chromosomes. Haplotype (14–11, 14–13–29–24–11–13–13) with five occurrences in 198 chromosomes was the most frequent in Brazil