Original Paper

Evidence for mtDNA Admixture between the Finns and the Saami
Maria Meinilä, Saara Finnilä, Kari Majamaa

Departments of Neurology and Medical Biochemistry, and Biocenter, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

Address of Corresponding Author

Hum Hered 2001;52:160-170 (DOI: 10.1159/000053372)

  Key Words

• Population genetics
• mtDNA haplotypes
• Admixture

  Abstract

Objectives: The Finns, and to a more extreme extent the Saami, are genetic outliers in Europe. Despite the close geographical contact between these populations, no major contribution of Saami mtDNA haplotypes to the Finnish population has been detected. Methods: To examine the extent of maternal gene flow from the Saami into Finnish populations, we determined the mtDNA variation in 403 persons living in four provinces in central and northern Finland. For all of these samples, we assessed the frequencies of mtDNA haplogroups and examined sequence variation in the hypervariable segment I (HVS-I). The resulting data were compared with published information for Saami populations. Results: The frequencies of the mtDNA haplogroups differed between the populations of the four provinces, suggesting a distinction between northern and central Finland. Analysis of molecular variance suggested that the Saami deviated less from the population of northern Finland than from that of central Finland. Five HVS-I haplotypes, including that harboring the Saami motif and the Asian-specific haplogroup Z, were shared between the Finns and the Saami and allowed comparisons between the populations. Their frequency was highest in the Saami and decreased towards central Finland. Conclusions: The high frequency of certain mtDNA haplotypes considered to be Saami specific in the Finnish population suggests a genetic admixture, which appears to be more pronounced in northern Finland. Furthermore, the presence of haplogroup Z in the Finns and the Saami indicates that traces of Asian mtDNA genotypes have survived in the contemporary populations.

Copyright © 2001 S. Karger AG, Basel

  Author Contacts

Dr. Kari Majamaa, MD
University of Oulu, Department of Neurology
PO Box 5000
FIN-90014 University of Oulu (Finland)
Tel. +358 8 315 4526, Fax +358 8 315 4544, E-Mail kari.majamaa@oulu.fi

  Article Information

Received: Received: December 4, 2000
Accepted: January 23, 2001
Revision received: January 3, 2001
Number of Print Pages : 11
Number of Figures : 1, Number of Tables : 6, Number of References : 31