J Syst Evol ›› 2015, Vol. 53 ›› Issue (6): 546-560.DOI: 10.1111/jse.12147

• Research Articles • Previous Articles    

A late Neolithic expansion of Y chromosomal haplogroup O2a1-M95 from east to west

GaneshPrasad ArunKumar1,2, Lan-Hai Wei3, Valampuri John Kavitha1,4, Adhikarla Syama1, Varatharajan Santhakumari Arun1, Surendra Sathua5, Raghunath Sahoo6, R. Balakrishnan7, Tomo Riba8, Jharna Chakravarthy9, Bapukan Chaudhury10, Premanada Panda11, Pradipta K Das12, Prasanna K Nayak13, Hui Li3, Ramasamy Pitchappan1,14*, and The Genographic Consortium   

  1. 1The Genographic Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai 625021, India
    2School of Chemical and Biotechnology, SASTRA University, Thanjavur 613401, India
    3MOE Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China
    4Department of Biotechnology, Mother Theresa University, Kodaikanal 624102, India
    5Project Coordinator, Sarba Sikhya Abjhijan, Rayagada, Orissa 765001, India
    6DND Agency-Bondo Project Leader (Retd), Rayagada Directorate, Bhubaneswar, Orissa 751004, India
    7Roja Muthiah Research Library, Taramani, Chennai 600113, India
    8Department of Geography, Rajiv Ghandhi University, Rnono Hills, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh 791112, India
    9Department of Zoology, Rajiv Ghandhi University, Rnono Hills, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh 791112, India
    10Department of Anthropology, Gauwhati University, Guwahati, Assam 781014, India 11Department Anthropology, Sambalpur University, Jyoti Vihar, Sambalpur, Orissa 768019, India 12Department of Anthropology, Guru Ghasidas Central University, Bilaspur, Chattisgarh 495009, India 13Department of Anthropology, Utkal University, Vani Vihar, Bhubaneswar, Orissa 751004, India 14Genomics Laboratory, Chettinad Academy of Research and Education, Kelampakkam, Chennai 603103, India
  • Received:2014-10-03 Published:2015-11-30

Abstract: The origin and dispersal of Y-Chromosomal haplogroup O2a1-M95, distributed across the Austro Asiatic speaking belt of East and South Asia, are yet to be fully understood. Various studies have suggested either an East Indian or Southeast Asian origin of O2a1-M95. We addressed the issue of antiquity and dispersal of O2a1-M95 by sampling 8748 men from India, Laos, and China and compared them to 3307 samples from other intervening regions taken from the literature. Analyses of haplogroup frequency and Y-STR data on a total 2413 O2a1-M95 chromosomes revealed that the Laos samples possessed the highest frequencies of O2a1-M95 (74% with >0.5) and its ancestral haplogroups (O2*-P31, O*-M175) as well as a higher proportion of samples with 14STR-median haplotype (17 samples in 14 populations), deep coalescence time (5.7 ± 0.3 Kya) and consorted O2a1-M95 expansion evidenced from STR evolution. All these suggested Laos to carry a deep antiquity of O2a1-M95 among the study regions. A serial decrease in expansion time from east to west: 5.7 ± 0.3 Kya in Laos, 5.2 ± 0.6 in Northeast India, and 4.3 ± 0.2 in East India, suggested a late Neolithic east to west spread of the lineage O2a1-M95 from Laos.

Key words: Laos, migration, Neolithic, NRY, O2a1-M95