Occurrence of a Rare Variant of Superoxide Dismutase in Brazil

Abstract

During a paternity test performed in Porto Alegre, Brazil, a rare variant of superoxide dismutase, probably SOD A² was found in a Caucasian child and the putative father. Studies of 1,700 unrelated white individuals from the same and nearby cities had never disclosed such a variant, which was also absent in 2,480 persons of other ethnic groups living in different regions of Brazil. The presence of this rare phenotype in the child and putative father led to the assignment of a very high probability of paternity to the latter.

Genetics, surnames, grandparents' nationalities, and ethnic admixture in Southern Brazil: Do the patterns of variation coincide?

“…The non-Indian populations of the States of Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina have been fairly well studied in the last three decades (Tondo and Salzano, 1962;Tondo et al, 1963;Salzano, 1963;Schwantes et al, 1967;Salzano et al, 1967Salzano et al, , 1968aLewgoy and Salzano, 1968;Hutz et al, 1977;Weimer et al, 1981Weimer et al, , 1987Weimer et al, , 1993Franco et al, 1981Franco et al, , 1982Franco et al, , 1986Silva et al, 1981;Franco and Salzano, 1985;Rieger et al, 1988;Arai et al, 1989;Bortolini et al, 1992Bortolini et al, , 1994Bortolini et al, , 1995Bortolini et al, , 1997aBortolini et al, ,b, 1998Heidrich et al, 1995;Robinson et al, 1998). However, these investigations have not provided a detailed distribution pattern of the polymorphisms investigated, nor a comparison with attributes such as grandparents' nationalities or the individuals' surnames, which could give clues about the history of these groups.…”

Isoelectric Focusing of Superoxide Dismutase: Report of the Unique SODA*2 Allele in a US White Population

“…Several hypotheses have been proposed regarding the origin and distribution of the SOD A*2 allele in different popualation groups [Beckman, 1973;Kirk, 1974;Crosti et al, 1976;Papiha and Al-Agidi, 1976;Spedini et al, 1982;Weimer et al, 1987]. However, the most likely explana tion appears to be that offered by Kirk [ 1974] who suggested that the SOD A *2 al lele was spread across Europe by Vikings through their successive migrations from their homeland in Scandinavia.…”