Full text in pdf format

Frequency of five genetic polymorphisms in two populations of Colombia

M.V. Monsalve^I; A. Espinel^I; H. Groot de Restrepo^I; M. Calvo^I; M.C. Suarez^II; A. Rodriguez^II

^ILaboratório de Genética Humana, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia. Send correspondence to M.V.M. at the following address: Charing Cross Sunley Research Centre, Lurgan Avenue, Hammersmith, London W6 8LW, England
^IIServicio de Erradicación de la Malaria, Ministerio de Salud, Bogotá, Colombia

ABSTRACT

The prevalences of alleles from the glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), hemoglobin (Hb), ABO, Rh and haptoglobin (Hp) systems were investigated in two mixed Noanama Indian and Black Colombian populations. Among the Blacks the G6PD, Rh and Hp markers showed the expected frequencies, but the relatively high values found for Hb*C (0.057) and ABO*O (0.853), as well as the low one of ABO*B (0.046) should be emphasized. The hemoglobin results can be explained by immigration of people from areas of high Hb*C prevalences in Africa, or differential survival of carriers of this gene in Colombia, while the ABO findings may reflect Amerindian admixture. The presence of one G6PD-deficient subject, as well as the occurrence of Hb*C (0.106), ABO*A (0.260) and ABO*B (0.027) among those labelled as predominantly Amerindian suggests heavy admixture, but the absence of Rh(-) among them is as expected. The number of liaptoglobin typings performed in this group was low; the Hp*1 frequency observed (0.700) is similar to those found in South American Indians in general, but differs from the prevalence observed in a previous study of Noanama Indians.

Keywords: frequency; genetic; polymorphisms.

REFERENCES

Kirk, R.L., McDermid, E.M., Blake, N.M., Gajdusek, D.C., Leyshon, W.C. and MacLennan, R. (1974). Blood group, serum protein and red cell enzyme groups of Amerindian populations in Colombia. Am. J. Phys. Anthrop. 41: 301-316.

Restrepo, A. and Gutierrez, E. (1967). The frequency of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency in Colombia. Am. J. Hum. Genet. 20: 82-83.