Population genetics and structure of Buryats from the Lake Baikal Region of Siberia.

Genetic polymorphisms of blood groups, serum proteins, red cell enzymes, PTC tasting, and cerumen types are reported for five Mongoloid populations of Buryats from the Lake Baikal region of Siberia (Russia). These groups are characterized by relatively high frequencies of alleles ABO*B, RH*D, cerumen D, GC*1F, ACP1*B, ESD*2, and PGD*C. Significant genetic heterogeneity between populations was demonstrated for the loci RH, MN, cerumen, PGD, ABO, GC, GLO, TF, and PGM1. Genetic distance analyses using five loci revealed a lower level of genetic microdifferentiation within the Buryat populations compared with other native Siberian groups. The distribution of gene markers in Buryats is similar to that found in neighboring Central Asian groups, such as the Yakuts and the Mongols. Intrapopulational analyses of the five Buryat subdivisions, based on R matrix and rii, indicate that one of the subdivisions is reproductively more isolated than the others and that two of the communities have received considerable gene flow. A nonlinear relationship was demonstrated between geographic and genetic distances of Buryat population subdivisions.