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Mentor Areas

Subject areas: Human evolutionary genetics, mitochondrial biology and disease, biomedical genetics, ancient DNA, primate genetics Geographic areas: Africa, the Americas, Australia, Georgia (Caucasus), Melanesia, Siberia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Turkey

Description:

The goal of this project is to explore the genetic ancestry of Dominicans and trace their connections to different populations who contributed to their formation in the New World. We are characterizing mtDNA and Y-chromosome diversity to determine female and male lineages present in this community, and using phylogeographic methods to trace their ancestral connections to different regions of the world, including the Americas, Africa and Europe. We are also employing the GenoChip microarray to investigate autosomal SNP diversity in these individuals, hence, the genetic contributions of ancestors from different parts of the world. Overall, this project will greatly enlarge our understanding of Dominican history, and especially the nature and extent of indigenous populations’ contribution to its biological make-up. It will also expand our understanding of Taino genetic ancestry there in relation to places such as Puerto Rico and Cuba, and allow testing of different models for the settlement history of the region.

Preferred Qualifications

This project began in fall 2015 and will continue through the 2019-20 academic year. Basic DNA analysis began after sample collection was completed in March 2016, with over 1000 individuals being enrolled in the study, and will continue for the next 12-16 months. The student involved in this project will help to characterize the mtDNA and Y-chromosome variation in this population, which involves lab work and statistical analysis of the resulting data sets. Some laboratory experience with molecular genetics is preferred.

Details:

Preferred Student Year

First-year, Second-Year, Junior, Senior

Volunteer

Yes

Yes indicates that faculty are open to volunteers.

Paid

Yes

Yes indicates that faculty are open to paying students they engage in their research, regardless of their work-study eligibility.

Work Study

Yes

Yes indicates that faculty are open to hiring work-study-eligible students.

Researcher


Professor in the Department of Anthropology, and a Consulting Curator in the Physical Anthropology and American Sections of the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology