Interciencia ISSN: 0378-1844 [email protected] Asociación Interciencia Venezuela Morales, Jorge Omar; Dipierri, José Edgardo; Alfaro, Emma; Bejarano, Ignacio Felipe Distribution of the abo system in the argentine northwest: miscegenation and genetic diversity Interciencia, vol. 25, núm. 9, diciembre, 2000, pp. 432-435 Asociación Interciencia Caracas, Venezuela Available in: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=33905106 How to cite Complete issue Scientific Information System More information about this article Network of Scientific Journals from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal Journal's homepage in redalyc.org Non-profit academic project, developed under the open access initiative COMUNICACIONES REPORTS COMUNICAÇÕES DISTRIBUTION OF THE ABO SYSTEM IN THE ARGENTINE NORTHWEST: MISCEGENATION AND GENETIC DIVERSITY Jorge Omar Morales, José Edgardo Dipierri, Emma Alfaro and Ignacio Felipe Bejarano SUMMARY Based on the ABO system phenotypes of 95,562 individuals and Black) was estimated. Although no significant interpopula- from the six provinces that constitute the Argentine northwest tion differences of allele frequencies were detected, their geo- (Jujuy, Salta, Tucuman, Catamarca, La Rioja, and Santiago del graphical distribution agreed with other sources of biological Estero), allele frequency, heterozygosis, and genetic admixture, information and with ethnohistorical and census data on this assuming three parental populations (American Indian, Spanish, region’s settlement. Introduction groups, this polymorphism is (Lorandi and Otonello, 1992). the ANW population. They systematically and widely re- The Argentine northwest were: a) The pre-colonial Erythrocyte polymorphisms corded and documented, mak- (ANW) did not escape this stage (indigenous); b) The co- have exhaustingly been used ing it a traditional marker of process. It became a region lonial stage (Spanish and to characterize - both biologi- choice that supplies mass in- thanks to the singularity de- Black); and c) The national cally and ethnographically - formation on intra- and inter- rived from its physical, eth- State (other ethnic groups) different populations, and to population genetic variability. nic, historical and religious (Dipierri et al., 1996). reconstruct the history and Following the discovery of structure (Ruiz, 1993). Start- The aim of this study was geography of human genes America, new biological and ing from the time of arrival to determine the geographic (Comas, 1974; Mourant et al., cultural realities began to take of allochthonous extraconti- distribution of the ABO sys- 1976; Cavalli-Sforza et al., shape, with mestizo and Cre- nental populations to the re- tem in the ANW in order to 1994). Due to the ease for ole societies resulting from gion, three stages were deter- genetically characterize its ur- testing for the ABO blood mixes and new migrations mined in the constitution of ban mestizo populations, and KEY WORDS / ABO / Miscegenation / Genetic Diversity / Argentine Northwest / Jorge Omar Morales. Anthropol- Facultad de Humanidades y 4600 San Salvador de Jujuy. cias Sociales. Universidad Na- ogist. Instituto de Biología de la Ciencias Sociales. Universidad Argentina. cional de Jujuy. Altura. Universidad Nacional de Nacional de Jujuy. Address: e-mail:[email protected] Ignacio Felipe Bejarano. Anthropol- Jujuy. Instituto de Biología de la Altu- Emma Alfaro. Geneticist. Instituto ogist. Facultad de Humanidades José Edgardo Dipierri. MD. Insti- ra, Universidad Nacional de de Biología de la Altura y Fa- y Ciencias Sociales. Universidad tuto de Biología de la Altura y Jujuy, Avda. Bolivia 1665, cultad de Humanidades y Cien- Nacional de Jujuy. 432 0378-1844/00/09/432-04 $ 3.00/0 DEC 2000, VOL. 25 Nº 9 RESUMEN Con base en los fenotipos del sistema ABO de 95.562 indi- Si bien no se detectaron diferencias significativas en las fre- viduos de las seis provincias del noroeste argentino (Jujuy,Salta, cuencias de alelos entre poblaciones, su distribución geográfica Tucumán, Catamarca, La Rioja y Santiago del Estero) se estimó fue concordante con otras fuentes de información biológica y la frecuencia alélica, la heterocigosis y la miscegenación, asu- con datos etnohistóricos y censales de los asentamientos huma- miendo tres poblaciones parentales (india, española y negra). nos en esta región. RESUMO Com base nos fenotipos do sistema ABO de 95.562 indiví- Se bem que não detectaram diferencias significativas nas fre- duos das seis províncias do nordeste argentino (Jujuy,Salta, qüências de alelos entre populações, sua distribuição geográfi- Tucumán, Catamarca, La Rioja e Santiago do Estero) se esti- ca foi concordante com outras fontes de informação biológica e mou a freqüência alélica, a heterocigosis e a miscegenação, com dados de etnohistóricos e censos dos assentamentos huma- assumindo três populações parentais (índia, espanhola e negra). nos nesta região. to analyze the biological af- through time as it is the terri- finities among them and their tory that best resisted the proc- degree of genetic admixture. ess of denaturalization caused by successive ethnic disrup- Populations and Methods tions that took place during the different stages of settle- The ANW extends between ment of the region. 22º 46' and 30º11' southern Sources for the data used in latitude, and between 61º43' this study were: a) blood do- and 69º 05' western longitude. nors; b) records of driving li- It consists of six provinces cense applicants; c) incorpora- (Figure 1) with a total popu- tions to military post stations lation of 3,677,538 inhabit- in the ANW. Determinations ants. From the biogeographi- for each province included cal point of view, it is a sec- genotype and alleles frequen- tion of the Neo-Tropical Re- cies of the system (maximum gion, with a wide diversity of likelihood method, MAXLIK atmospheres (mountains, high software) heterozygosis (Nei, altitude deserts, and forests) 1973), and genetic admixture (Cabrera and Willink, 1973). (Chakraborty, 1985), assum- Earliest cultures inhabiting ing three parental populations: the current ANW were limited a) Spanish (Junyent et al., to some ethnical groups that 1992); b) South-American In- linguistically used a mosaic of dians (Salzano and Callegari- languages and dialects (Gon- Jacques, 1988); and c) Black zález and Pérez, 1972). From (Castro de Guerra, 1993). the cultural point of view, Nei’s method (1973) was they belonged to the North- used to determine genetic dis- west Cultural Area, Sub-Area tances and the corresponding of the South Andean Area tree was developed from and macro Andean Area there. As no statistically sig- (Hernández, 1992). It consti- nificant differences were ob- tutes the most important cul- served among the alleles fre- Figure 1. Mapa tural area in the Argentine ter- quencies from the various ritory with the most relevant sources, estimates were made consequences in the develop- by grouping them. (0.81±0.001), followed by A Estero showed the highest AB ment of its population. This (0.14 ± 0.001) and B (0.05 ± penotype percentages. characteristic is partially deter- Results 0.001) (Table I). Allele fre- Average heterozygosis (AH) mined by: a) The numerical quencies did not present sta- among populations was of relevance of its native popula- The most frequent pheno- tistically significant interpro- 0.321, while total heterozygosis tion, for it registered the type we found over a total of vincial differences. The prov- was of 0.326, and interpopula- highest population density in 95,562 individuals was 0 inces with highest percentages tion genetic diversity was of pre-Spanish times (Hernández, (66%), followed by A (24%), of 0 phenotype, however, 0.015. The highest heterozygo- 1992); b) The permanence of B (8%), and AB (2%). The were Jujuy and Salta, while sis was found in Tucumán, and this autochthonous population most frequent allele was 0 Tucumán and Santiago del the lowest, in Jujuy (Table II). DEC 2000, VOL. 25 Nº 9 433 TABLE I PHENOTYPES AND ALLELE FREQUENCIES PROVINCES JUJUY SALTA TUCUMAN STGO. CATAMARCA LA RIOJA TOTAL DEL ESTERO Phenotypes N % N % N % N % N % N % N % A 1199 14.66 4789 16.92 3479 30.72 8896 28.01 2907 30.49 1839 28.43 23109 24.18 B 476 5.82 1542 5.45 1147 10.13 3055 9.62 863 9.05 474 7.33 7557 7.91 AB 48 0.59 214 0.76 255 2.25 1000 3.15 185 1.94 112 1.73 1814 1.90 O 6453 78.93 21758 76.87 6442 56.90 18805 59.22 5580 58.52 4044 62.51 63082 66.01 Allele Frequencies A 0.08 ± 0.002 0.09 ± 0.001 0.18 ± 0.003 0.17 ± 0.002 0.18 ± 0.008 0.16 ± 0.003 0.14 ± 0.001 B 0.03 ± 0.001 0.03 ± 0.001 0.06 ± 0.002 0.07 ± 0.002 0.05 ± 0.003 0.05 ± 0.002 0.05 ± 0.001 O 0.89 ± 0.002 0.88 ± 0.001 0.76 ± 0.003 0.76 ± 0.002 0.77 ± 0.007 0.79 ± 0.004 0.81 ± 0.001 A high proportion (above would result from intrapopu- and persisted with the arrival sult, these populations were 60%) of autochthonous mix- lation differences. of the Spanish conqueror, severely ravaged and denatu- ture was observed in the prov- The highest frequency of 0 whose influence altered popu- ralized (Lorandi and Otonello, inces of Jujuy and Salta, while allele was found in the prov- lation dynamics and the eth- 1992; Hernández, 1992). The Spanish contribution (above inces of Jujuy and Salta nic relationship through dif- opposite took place in the 40%) was found in Catamarca, (Table I). Coincidentally, ferent mechanisms of mass current provinces of Jujuy La Rioja and Tucumán. The these provinces also showed denaturalization of natives and Salta, where rebellion Black component (over 20%) lower average heterozygosis, (mitimaes, yanaconazgos or was shorter and communities was found in Santiago del higher biological affinity with Indian binding to personal adopted resistance strategies Estero, Tucumán, and the American Indian parental service, wars, and other forms and reached agreements with Catamarca (Table II).