Human Salivary Microbiota Diversity According to Ethnicity, Sex, TRPV1 Variants and Sensitivity to Capsaicin.

The salivary microbiota of Italian and sub-Saharan African individuals was investigated using Nanopore sequencing technology (ONT: Oxford Nanopore Technologies). We detected variations in community composition in relation to endogenous (ethnicity, sex, and diplotypic variants of the gene) and exogenous (sensitivity to capsaicin) factors. The results showed that , , , , , and are the most abundant genera, in accordance with the literature.

Association between Variants of the TRPV1 Gene and Body Composition in Sub-Saharan Africans.

In humans, the transient receptor potential vanilloid 1 () gene is activated by exogenous (e.g., high temperatures, irritating compounds such as capsaicin) and endogenous (e.

Exploring the Neandertal legacy of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma risk in Eurasians.

Background: The genomes of present-day non-Africans are composed of 1-3% of Neandertal-derived DNA as a consequence of admixture events between Neandertals and anatomically modern humans about 50-60 thousand years ago. Neandertal-introgressed single nucleotide polymorphisms (aSNPs) have been associated with modern human disease-related traits, which are risk factors for pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and inflammation. In this study, we aimed at investigating the role of aSNPs in PDAC in three Eurasian populations.

Gene Structure Evolution of the Short-Chain Dehydrogenase/Reductase (SDR) Family.

SDR (Short-chain Dehydrogenases/Reductases) are one of the oldest and heterogeneous superfamily of proteins, whose classification is problematic because of the low percent identity, even within families. To get clearer insights into SDR molecular evolution, we explored the splicing site organization of the 75 human genes across their vertebrate and invertebrate orthologs. We found anomalous gene structures in members of the human SDR7C and SDR42E families that provide clues of retrogene properties and independent evolutionary trajectories from a common invertebrate ancestor.

Inter-individual genomic heterogeneity within European population isolates.

A number of studies carried out since the early '70s has investigated the effects of isolation on genetic variation within and among human populations in diverse geographical contexts. However, no extensive analysis has been carried out on the heterogeneity among genomes within isolated populations. This issue is worth exploring since events of recent admixture and/or subdivision could potentially disrupt the genetic homogeneity which is to be expected when isolation is prolonged and constant over time.

Taste Perception of Antidesma bunius Fruit and Its Relationships to Bitter Taste Receptor Gene Haplotypes.

It was shown more than 40 years ago that the ability to perceive the bitterness of the fruit of the Antidesma bunius tree is inversely correlated with the ability to perceive the well-studied bitter tastant phenylthiocarbamide (PTC). To determine if variants of the TAS2R38 gene, which encodes the PTC taste receptor, or variants in any of the other TAS2R bitter or TAS1R sweet receptor genes account for Antidesma taste perception, we recruited an independent subject sample and examined associations between these taste receptor gene haplotypes and Antidesma perception. Consistent with previous findings, almost none of our subjects who reported Antidesma juice as bitter was a PTC "responder" by previous definitions (i.

Association between polymorphisms of TAS2R16 and susceptibility to colorectal cancer.

Background: Genetics plays an important role in the susceptibility to sporadic colorectal cancer (CRC). In the last 10 years genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified over 40 independent low penetrance polymorphic variants. However, these loci only explain around 1‑4% of CRC heritability, highlighting the dire need of identifying novel risk loci.

Stuck in fragments: Population genetics of the Endangered collared brown lemur Eulemur collaris in the Malagasy littoral forest.

Objectives: The Endangered collared brown lemur (Eulemur collaris) is the largest primate living in the littoral forest of southeastern Madagascar, a top priority habitat for biodiversity conservation on the island. Because this lemur is a key seed-disperser, an evaluation of the structure and connectivity of the populations surviving in the forest fragments is urgently needed to guide conservation plans.

Materials And Methods: Genetic variability at autosomal microsatellites and mitochondrial DNA was investigated in a total of 49 collared brown lemurs sampled by non-invasive methods in three littoral forest fragments and in the nearby lowland humid forest.

A bio-cultural approach to the study of food choice: The contribution of taste genetics, population and culture.

The study of food choice, one of the most complex human traits, requires an integrated approach that takes into account environmental, socio-cultural and biological diversity. We recruited 183 volunteers from four geo-linguistic groups and highly diversified in terms of both genetic background and food habits from whom we collected genotypes and phenotypes tightly linked to taste perception. We confirmed previous genetic associations, in particular with stevioside perception, and noted significant differences in food consumption: in particular, broccoli, mustard and beer consumption scores were significantly higher (Adjusted P = 0.

Overcoming the dichotomy between open and isolated populations using genomic data from a large European dataset.

Human populations are often dichotomized into "isolated" and "open" categories using cultural and/or geographical barriers to gene flow as differential criteria. Although widespread, the use of these alternative categories could obscure further heterogeneity due to inter-population differences in effective size, growth rate, and timing or amount of gene flow. We compared intra and inter-population variation measures combining novel and literature data relative to 87,818 autosomal SNPs in 14 open populations and 10 geographic and/or linguistic European isolates.

Global diversity in the TAS2R38 bitter taste receptor: revisiting a classic evolutionary PROPosal.

The ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) and 6-n-propylthiouracil (PROP) is a polymorphic trait mediated by the TAS2R38 bitter taste receptor gene. It has long been hypothesized that global genetic diversity at this locus evolved under pervasive pressures from balancing natural selection. However, recent high-resolution population genetic studies of TAS2Rs suggest that demographic events have played a critical role in the evolution of these genes.

Estimating Sampling Selection Bias in Human Genetics: A Phenomenological Approach.

This research is the first empirical attempt to calculate the various components of the hidden bias associated with the sampling strategies routinely-used in human genetics, with special reference to surname-based strategies. We reconstructed surname distributions of 26 Italian communities with different demographic features across the last six centuries (years 1447-2001). The degree of overlapping between "reference founding core" distributions and the distributions obtained from sampling the present day communities by probabilistic and selective methods was quantified under different conditions and models.

The Role of Recent Admixture in Forming the Contemporary West Eurasian Genomic Landscape.

Over the past few years, studies of DNA isolated from human fossils and archaeological remains have generated considerable novel insight into the history of our species. Several landmark papers have described the genomes of ancient humans across West Eurasia, demonstrating the presence of large-scale, dynamic population movements over the last 10,000 years, such that ancestry across present-day populations is likely to be a mixture of several ancient groups [1-7]. While these efforts are bringing the details of West Eurasian prehistory into increasing focus, studies aimed at understanding the processes behind the generation of the current West Eurasian genetic landscape have been limited by the number of populations sampled or have been either too regional or global in their outlook [8-11].

Shared language, diverging genetic histories: high-resolution analysis of Y-chromosome variability in Calabrian and Sicilian Arbereshe.

The relationship between genetic and linguistic diversification in human populations has been often explored to interpret some specific issues in human history. The Albanian-speaking minorities of Sicily and Southern Italy (Arbereshe) constitute an important portion of the ethnolinguistic variability of Italy. Their linguistic isolation from neighboring Italian populations and their documented migration history, make such minorities particularly effective for investigating the interplay between cultural, geographic and historical factors.

Detection of phylogenetically informative polymorphisms in the entire euchromatic portion of human Y chromosome from a Sardinian sample.

Background: Next-Generation Sequencing methods have led to a great increase in phylogenetically useful markers within the male specific portion of the Y chromosome, but previous studies have limited themselves to the study of the X-degenerate regions.

Methods: DNA was extracted from peripheral blood samples of adult males whose paternal grandfathers were born in Sardinia. The DNA samples were sequenced, genotyped and subsequently analysed for variant calling for approximately 23.

Mitochondrial and Y chromosome haplotype motifs as diagnostic markers of Jewish ancestry: a reconsideration.

Several authors have proposed haplotype motifs based on site variants at the mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) and the non-recombining portion of the Y chromosome (NRY) to trace the genealogies of Jewish people. Here, we analyzed their main approaches and test the feasibility of adopting motifs as ancestry markers through construction of a large database of mtDNA and NRY haplotypes from public genetic genealogical repositories. We verified the reliability of Jewish ancestry prediction based on the Cohen and Levite Modal Haplotypes in their "classical" 6 STR marker format or in the "extended" 12 STR format, as well as four founder mtDNA lineages (HVS-I segments) accounting for about 40% of the current population of Ashkenazi Jews.

Genetic variation in taste receptor pseudogenes provides evidence for a dynamic role in human evolution.

Background: Human bitter taste receptors are encoded by a gene family consisting of 25 functional TAS2R loci. In addition, humans carry 11 TAS2R pseudogenes, some of which display evidence for substantial diversification among species, showing lineage-specific loss of function. Since bitter taste is thought to help prevent the intake of toxic substances, diversity at TAS2R genes could reflect the action of natural selection on the ability to recognize some bitter compounds rather than others.

Geographic population structure analysis of worldwide human populations infers their biogeographical origins.

The search for a method that utilizes biological information to predict humans' place of origin has occupied scientists for millennia. Over the past four decades, scientists have employed genetic data in an effort to achieve this goal but with limited success. While biogeographical algorithms using next-generation sequencing data have achieved an accuracy of 700 km in Europe, they were inaccurate elsewhere.

Genetic signature of differential sensitivity to stevioside in the Italian population.

The demand for diet products is continuously increasing, together with that for natural food ingredients. Stevioside and other steviol glycosides extracted from the leaves of the plant Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni are the first natural high-potency sweeteners to be approved for consumption in the United States and the European Union. However, the sweetness of these compounds is generally accompanied by aversive sensations, such as bitter and off-tastes, which may constitute a limit to their consumption.

Linguistic, geographic and genetic isolation: a collaborative study of Italian populations.

The animal and plant biodiversity of the Italian territory is known to be one of the richest in the Mediterranean basin and Europe as a whole, but does the genetic diversity of extant human populations show a comparable pattern? According to a number of studies, the genetic structure of Italian populations retains the signatures of complex peopling processes which took place from the Paleolithic to modern era. Although the observed patterns highlight a remarkable degree of genetic heterogeneity, they do not, however, take into account an important source of variation. In fact, Italy is home to numerous ethnolinguistic minorities which have yet to be studied systematically.

Increased efficiency in geographic ancestry assignment and human identification by combining lineage profiles: The case of the Iranians.

Objectives: This research is a first empirical attempt to quantify the increase of the among-groups variance and the probative value of a DNA evidence when combining profiles based on markers with uniparental inheritance.

Methods: Yfiler and HVS-I panels of loci were analyzed in 130 healthy unrelated males from six Iranian native groups.

Results: A separate analysis of DNA profiles at the two lineage markers failed to detect a population substructure, whereas maximum levels of genetic diversity (HD = 1) and discrimination capacity (DC = 1) were obtained by combining the two profiles.