Y chromosome diversity in Aztlan descendants and its implications for the history of Central Mexico

• Published in: iScience
• Main Authors: Rocío Gómez, Miguel G. Vilar, Marco Antonio Meraz-Ríos, David Véliz, Gerardo Zúñiga, Esther Alhelí Hernández-Tobías, Maria del Pilar Figueroa-Corona, Amanda C. Owings, Jill B. Gaieski, Theodore G. Schurr
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021
• Subjects: Biological sciences; Evolutionary biology; Evolutionary history; Genetics; Genotyping; Science; Q; Canada; Beringia; Siberia
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2021.102487; https://doaj.org/article/5a0b9217cf2d44f19af0a7b74a8a68f6

Summary: Native Mexican populations are crucial for understanding the genetic ancestry of Aztec descendants and coexisting ethnolinguistic groups in the Valley of Mexico and elucidating the population dynamics of the prehistoric colonization of the Americas. Mesoamerican societies were multicultural in nature and also experienced significant admixture during Spanish colonization of the region. Despite these facts, Native Mexican Y chromosome diversity has been greatly understudied. To further elucidate their genetic history, we conducted a high-resolution Y chromosome analysis with Chichimecas, Nahuas, Otomies, Popolocas, Tepehuas, and Totonacas using 19 Y-short tandem repeat and 21 single nucleotide polymorphism loci. We detected enormous paternal genetic diversity in these groups, with haplogroups Q-MEH2, Q-M3, Q-Z768, Q-L663, Q-Z780, and Q-PV3 being identified. These data affirmed the southward colonization of the Americas via Beringia and connected Native Mexicans with indigenous populations from South-Central Siberia and Canada. They also suggested that multiple population dispersals gave rise to Y chromosome diversity in these populations.