Analysis of 24 Y chromosomal STR haplotypes in a Chinese Han population sample from Henan Province, Central China

We analyzed haplotypes for 24 Y chromosomal STRs (Y-STRs), including 17 Yfiler loci (DYS19, DYS385a/b, DYS389I/II, DYS390, DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS437, DY438, DYS439, DYS448, DYS456, DYS458, DYS635 and Y-GATA-H4) and 7 additional STRs (DYS388, DYS444, DYS447, DYS449, DYS522 and DYS527a/b) in 1100 unrelated Chinese Han individuals from Henan Province using AGCU Y24 STR kit systems. The calculated average gene diversity (GD) values ranged from 0.4105 to 0.9647 for the DYS388 and DYS385a/b loci, respectively. The discriminatory capacity (DC) was 72.91% with 802 observed haplotypes using 17 Yfiler loci, by the addition of 7 Y-STRs to the Yfiler system, the DC was increased to 79.09% while showing 870 observed haplotypes. Among the additional 7 Y-STRs, DYS449, DYS527a/b, DYS444 and DYS522 were major contributors to enhancing discrimination. In the analysis of molecular variance, the Henan Han population clustered with Han origin populations and showed significant differences from other Non-Han populations. In the present study, we report 24 Y-STR population data in Henan Han population, and we emphasize the need for adding additional markers to the commonly used 17 Yfiler loci to achieve more improved discriminatory capacity in a population with low genetic diversity.