The Egyptian population records significant differences in allele frequencies as compared to other Arabian populations from Morocco, Syria and Gaza using short tandem repeat system

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Egypt.

2 Department of Forensic Medicine and Clinical Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Egypt

Abstract

The allele frequencies of the selected somatic short tandem repeat (STR) polymorphic loci (D3S1358, TH01, D21S11, D18S51, Penta E, D5S818, D13S317, D7S820, D16S539, CSF1PO, Penta D, vWA, D8S1179, TPOX and FGA ) were evaluated for 103 buccal swab samples of healthy unrelated Egyptian individuals collected from 27 governorates. Two DNA extraction methods were used (a manual organic one and BioRobot EZ1 automatic method). Samples were amplified by PowerPlexR 16 system, genotyped and allele frequencies were calculated. The aim of this work was to establish a STR database for 15 loci in the Egyptian population and comparing their DNA characteristics with those of Morocco, Syria and Gaza, located at the very West and East of Mediterranean sea, respectively, and to chick if they can be fused to a single Arabian database. The present results indicated that buccal cell DNA samples can provide precise estimates of human amplifiable DNA. DNA yields obtained with the BioRobot EZ1 were of better quantity and quality of extracted DNA. In the studied Egyptian population, the current investigation recorded allele specificity in some loci; locus D21S11 (allele 28.2) and locus D18S51 (allele 13.2). However, other alleles could be recorded as non-specific for the Egyptian population like allele 16 of Penta D locus and alleles 6 and 13 of TPOX locus. The interpopulation comparison between the obtained Egyptian population database and the previously mentioned Arabian populations revealed significant differences allover the 15 loci. The presence of allele 20 of D3S1358 locus, allele 24.2 of D21S11 locus and allele19.2 of FGA locus in a sample from a crime scene and it is referred to unknown person indicates that the person is not Egyptian but from Morocco. If the allele 35.2 of D21S11 locus, allele 17.2 of D18S51 locus, allele 5 of CSF1PO and allele 9 of FGA locus is found in a sample from a crime scene and it referred to an unknown person, this indicates that the person is not Egyptian but from Gaza . If allele 16.4 of Penta E locus, allele 7 of D13S317 locus, allele 9.3 of D7S820 locus, allele 15 of D16S539 locus and allele 11.3 of D8S1179 locus found in a sample from a crime scene and it is referred to an unknown person, this indicates that the person is not Egyptian but from Syria. Thus, a common STR database for the Arabian population cannot be established. In conclusion, the present data may be considered as a helpful preparation for a preliminary construction of the local DNA database of the Egyptian population.

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