Genetic structure of a Cuban population based on nine short tandem repeat loci

Abstract

Cuba is a multiethnic and multiracial society. Here we describe the genetic variation of a sample of the Cuban population, which include the three most common racial groups, Caucasians, Negroids and Mestizos, by means of a set of nine microsatellites (HUMTH01, HUMTPOX, HUMCFS1PO, HUMVWA, HUMFESFPS, HUMF13A, HUMF13B, HUMLPL and HUMHPRTB). The analysis presented here indicates that these STR loci are highly informative for forensic purposes. The genetic data on the major racial groups is in good agreement with current demographic tendencies and with historic events that took place during the formation of the Cuban population.

HLA class I polymorphism in the Cuban population

“…A similar relation between Cuban mulattos and Afro-Americans was reported in a previous study with microsatellites markers [37] and could be a result of the similar African parental populations shared by Cubans and AfroAmericans. A contribution of 15-20% of European ancestry was estimated for Afro-Americans [38].…”