Studies of endemic cretinism in Papua New Guinea: digital and palmar dermatoglyphic patterns

We have tested the hypothesis that the abnormal development of the central nervous system seen in endemic cretinism might be accompanied by concurrent abnormal dermatoglyphic patterns. We compared digital and palmar dermatoglyphics of normal individuals and endemic cretins inhabiting the Huon Peninsula of Papua New Guinea. The population sampled from the Irumu River Valley included 118 males and 114 females with 22 male cretins and 23 female cretins. The population sampled from the Wantoat River Valley included 72 males and 38 females with 12 male cretins. No pathognomonic patterns were found that could identify the endemic cretin subpopulation. However, the occurrence of a number of differences between controls and cretins suggests that subtle changes in dermatoglyphic patterns accompany the anomalous development of the CNS secondary to maternal iodine deficiency. We discuss the significance of these findings and compare the dermatoglyphic patterns of normal Irumu and Wantoat natives and 21 other populations of Papua New Guinea.     

Geographic variation of six dermatoglyphic traits in Eurasia

We describe the geographic variation patterns of six dermatoglyphic traits from 144 samples in Eurasia. The methods of analysis include computation of interpolated surfaces, one-dimensional and directional correlograms, correlations between all pairs of surfaces, and distances between correlograms. There are at least two, probably three, distinct and significant patterns of variation. 1) A general NW-SE trend for pattern intensity, the main line index, and frequency of hypothenar patterns. 2) A trend from the Middle East to the north and east for frequency of axial triradius and of accessory interdigital triradii. 3) A patchy pattern for frequency of the thenar-interdigital 1. The results are compatible with a diffusion process between Europe and the peoples of Northern Asia, and possibly with a radiation of populations from the Middle East. The hypothesis of diffusion processes is supported by substantial interpopulation correlations between dermatoglyphic traits that contrast sharply with largely negligible intralocality correlations. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Dermatoglyphic assessment of the genetic relationships of native American populations

Genetic distance techniques and cluster analysis were used to determine which dermatoglyphic parameters were most useful in assessing genetic relationships between native American populations. The dermatoglyphic parameters used for this analysis were those most completely reported in the papers examined in a literature survey we had carried out previously, and include digital patterns, modal types of the C-line and D-line terminations, and palmar patterns in the hypothenar, thenar/I, and interdigital areas. The populations examined were separated by sex and divided into seven major geographical groups: Eskimo; North American Indian; Maya and non-Maya (Central America); Amazonian; Quechua, and Aymara (South America). Mean frequencies of dermatoglyphic traits were computed for each group and pairwise “genetic” distances calculated using Cavalli-Sforza and Edward's D-test. Dendrograms were then generated from these D-values using Q-mode cluster analysis. Using the hypothenar, thenar/I and III and IV interdigital areas, the results of this analysis demonstrated a good fit to an expected phylogenetic tree. When digital patterns, patterns in the II interdigital area, and the modal types of the C-line were included in the analysis, the same phylogenetic relationships were observed. However, inclusion of the modal types of the D-line with the other parameters tended to introduce some distortion and a greater separation between sexes within the same populations.     

赫哲族掌指纹特征研究

本文对166名健康赫哲族人的掌指纹进行了研究,其中男性86名,女性80名。本文列出了58个赫哲族掌指纹参数,将其中52个掌指纹特征输入电子计算机,进行了相关及主成份分析。并且,将赫哲族的掌指纹特征与汉族的掌指纹特征进行了比较。 结果表明:赫哲族的掌指纹特征是与汉族相似的,并且有自己的特征;双手同名指的相关系数大于非同名指,单手相邻指的相关系数大于相隔指;在有关掌指纹特征的研究中,指纹的重要性大于掌纹。     

中国人群肤纹的主成分分析

近年来 ,我国学者多将中国人群分为南、北两大类群。作者对我国 5 9个人群的肤纹进行主成分分析。结果表明 ,根据肤纹特征 ,可将中国人分为 6个族群 ,除北方族群、南方族群外 ,存在着新疆族群与西藏族群。新疆族群与北方族群相比 ,斗型率低 ,尺箕、桡箕率高 ,小鱼际区与指间区Ⅱ、Ⅲ真实花纹率高。西藏族群斗型率高、尺箕率低。北方族群与南方族群相比 ,指纹嵴线总数、小鱼际区与指间区Ⅲ真实花纹率高。此外 ,还存在南北族群间的过渡族群与南北混合族群。 8个汉族人群未能聚集 ,分散于各族群中。这表明 ,汉族与少数民族间、南北方民族间存在着肤纹基因的交流。将中华民族分为南北两大类群的观点可能过于简单化了。     

A multivariate approach to fingerprint variation in Papua New Guinea: Implications for prehistory

Fingerprint data from three Markham Valley populations of Papua New Guinea are presented. Initial comparisons with data from elsewhere in New Guinea by conventional bivariate methods suggest hypotheses regarding prehistory, but these methods are inconclusive. Because of this shortcoming, the application of discriminant analysis to dermatoglyphic data is justified and cautiously demonstrated. Discriminant analysis is a valid approach to the parsimonious study of fingerprint relationships among human populations. Significant discriminating variables are then used with the limited published data to display historical relationships. These marker traits include the separate frequencies of thumb, middle fingers, and little finger patterning, and the complexity of the thenar eminence. With regard to prehistory, it is concluded that fingerprint data support the hypothesis of separate origins and migrations for Papuan- and Melanesian-speaking peoples. Furthermore, it is suggested that these data support the linguistic hypothesis of a second Papuan migration of Trans New Guinea Phylum speakers, up the Markham Valley into the New Guinea Highlands. Finally, gene flow is indicated from Melanesian speakers of the north coast into the interior through the Sepik and Ramu River valleys, affecting both the Trans New Guinea Phylum and other unrelated Papuan groups. Moreover, there are numerous suggestions of recent reciprocal genetic exchange between neighboring Melanesians and Papuans, without obliterating the older, separate origins of these peoples. These results suggest that fingerprints have greater phylogenetic stability than other biological parameters used in the past.     

Genetic variability in macaques: Correlations between biochemical and dermatoglyphic systems

The palmar dermatoglyphics of four groups of macaque, Macaca nemestrina, M. fuscata yakui, M. f. fuscata and M. fascicularis, were compared, and the genetic affinities of the four groups were assessed using a dermatoglyphic mean square distance measure. According to this measure the two subspecies of M. fuscata were dermatoglyphically more distant from one another than was M. fuscata fuscata from M. nemestrina, suggesting that the two insular populations of M. fuscata had evolved in genetic isolation. The distributions of specific dermatoglyphic patterns were then compared with the frequency distributions of alleles at different protein structural loci in other macaque populations. The results of the comparison were consistent in that insular populations showed reduction in variability for both kinds of systems. The implications of this correlation are discussed in terms of population size and natural selection.     

Dermotoglyphics in the Bribri and Cabear Amerindians from Costa Rica]

Digital and palmar dermatoglyphic patterns were analysed for 286 male and female Bribri and Cabecar Amerindians of Chibcha ascendancy from four populations located in southeastern Costa Rica. There was no significant difference among Pacific and Atlantic Cabecar samples, with the exception of the bc and cd ridge count. However, the Bribri groups present differences for 22 features, though the largest differences are between Bribri and Cabecar Pacific populations. A comparison with other Latin-American indians evidence that dermatoglyphic patterns of Bribri and Cabecar tribes are within the expected range, but it is important to notice the high frequency of digital arcs and the low frequency of worls. The results are similar to those observed using other genetic markers in the same populations, and demonstrate the discriminable capacity of the dermatoglyphics to tribal level for taxonomic and evolutionary studies.     

Qualitative aspects of palmar dermatoglyphics in a sample of Sardinian population

The author examines certain qualitative aspects of palmar dermatoglyphics in 820 individuals of both sexes from the city of Cagliari (Sardinia). The overall results obtained are discussed and the sexual and lateral differences are considered. The sample examined differs from other Mediterranean samples because of a tendency toward a vertical trend of the papillary lines, a lower frequency of patterns in the 2nd and 3rd interdigital areas and a higher frequency of patterns in the 4th interdigital area.     

广西544例瑶族儿童的皮纹学观察

本文对广西544例瑶族儿童的皮纹进行了观察分析,计算出指纹类型的百分率、指纹脊线总数、a-b脊线数、主线横向指数、掌纹主线止区、指间及大小鱼际真实花样的百分率、踇趾球部花样的百分率共七项基本参数。与汉族比较,瑶族的皮纹既有自己的特点,又具有汉族的一般特性。     

Dermatoglyphic changes during the population admixture between Kam and Han Chinese

Genetic studies and gene localization for human dermatoglyphs are currently ongoing. However, the inheritance modes of various genetic traits are not well understood because of the complexity of dermatoglyph genetics. The study of admixed populations can contribute to the understanding of population genetic traits of dermatoglyphs. Here, we present the dermatoglyphic characteristics of Kam and Liujia Han, and the admixed population consisting of these two parent populations.The characteristics of the admixed population do not always fall in the same ranges as the parent population characters but do seem to be biased to Kam or Liujia parent populations, depending on sex and ethnicity of parents. The total frequencies of different fingerprint types do not differ among these populations, but several of the quantitative traits and the palm true pattern frequencies do significantly differ between admixed and parent populations. The simple arch fingerprint frequency decreases significantly in the admixed population in comparison with parent populations while both simple whorl fingerprint frequency and finger ridge counts increase significantly. True pattern frequency of the span area of interdigital III and IV areas on right hands and the radial-loop frequency of the right index fingers in the admixed populations are consistent with their matrilineal population. These dermatoglyphic changes may result from increased heterozygosity in the admixed population. The genetic modes of these changes may be relatively simple and will be useful for future dermatoglyph genetic studies.      

贵州省布依族和仡佬族的皮纹研究

本文报告了450例布依族和410例仡佬族的12项皮纹正常值测定,在左右手间和男女性间进行了比较,并以汉族作为对照。     

Geographical variation of digital dermatoglyphics in Africa

Data from 142 male and 43 female samples of African populations have been used to analyze the geographical variation of digital dermatoglyphics (arches, loops, whorls, and pattern intensity index) in Africa. The patterns of geographical variation have been summarized as contours of sixth-degree polynomial surfaces by means of trend-surface analysis. As pointed out by early studies, Africa exhibits geographical clines of digital dermatoglyphic patterns. However, only some of the frequency gradients previously described for the region find confirmation in the present study.     

Dermatoglyphic characteristics of a population from the central Rhodopes (south Bulgaria)

The finger and palmar prints of a total of 386 individuals (182 males and 204 females) at an age between 10 and 18 years from the region of the villages Petkovo and Banite, situated along the river Malka Arda in the Central Rhodopes, were studied. The following dermatoglyphic traits were analyzed: pattern intensity index (PII), the main line or Cummin's index (MLI), the frequencies of the proximal palmar triradius (t), the true hypothenar patterns (Hy) and the accessory interdigital triradii (AIT). The specific dermatoglyphic complexes after Heet were also determined for the population under study. A peculiarity of this population is the appearance of a clearly expressed Eastern Complex (EC), which accounts for 53.1% in the males and for 48.8% in the females. These values of EC and the calculated dermatoglyphic distances (DD) after Heet show a similarity between the examined population and a number of populations from the Volga region, Northern Caucasus, Middle Asia and Siberia. This similarity could be explained with the preservation of the genetic heritage of the proto-Bulgarians, one of the three main components of the modern Bulgarians.     

Dermatoglyphics from All Chinese Ethnic Groups Reveal Geographic Patterning

Completion of a survey of dermatoglyphic variables for all ethnic groups in an ethnically diverse country like China is a huge research project, and an achievement that anthropological and dermatoglyphic scholars in the country could once only dream of. However, through the endeavors of scientists in China over the last 30 years, the dream has become reality. This paper reports the results of a comprehensive analysis of dermatoglyphics from all ethnic groups in China. Using cluster analysis and principal component analysis of dermatoglyphics, it has been found that Chinese populations can be generally divided into a southern group and a northern group. Furthermore, there has been considerable debate about the origins of many Chinese populations and about proper assignment of these peoples to larger ethnic groups. In this paper, we suggest that dermatoglyphic data can inform these debates by helping to classify a Chinese population as a northern or southern group, using selected reference populations and quantitative methods. This study is the first to assemble and investigate dermatoglyphics from all 56 Chinese ethnic groups. It is fortunate that data on population dermatoglyphics, a field of physical anthropology, have now been collected for all 56 Chinese ethnic groups, because intermarriage between individuals from different Chinese ethnic groups occurs more frequently in recent times, making population dermatoglyphic research an ever more challenging field of inquiry.     

The dermatoglyphic characteristics of two isolated Bedouin groups from South Sinai

The dermatoglyphics of the Muzeina and Gebeliya Bedouin tribes, two small biologically isolated populations, leading a similar nomadic life under the specific conditions of the Sinai desert, were studied. The differences found between the studied samples concern particularly the frequencies of palmar and finger pattern types. These differences are in agreement with data on the origin of the tribes, a Negro and/or European admixture being evident in the Gebeliya dermatoglyphics. The coefficients of variation for some quantitative dermatoglyphic traits, presumably with a polygenic determination, are lower in the Muzeina than in the Gebeliya sample. Isolation and consanguinity may exert their influence on the dermatoglyphic traits influencing the frequencies of the corresponding genes.     

Digital dermatoglyphic patterns of Eskimo and Amerindian populations: relationships between geographic, dermatoglyphic, genetic, and linguistic distances.

Dermatoglyphic traits have been used to assess population affinities and structure. Here, we describe the digital patterns of four Eskimo populations from Alaska: two Yupik-speaking villages from St. Lawrence Island and two Inupik groups presently residing on mainland Alaska. For a broader evolutionary perspective, these four Eskimo populations are compared to other Inuit groups, to North American Indian populations, and to Siberian aggregates. The genetic structures of 18 New and Old World populations were explored using R-matrix plots and Wright's FST values. The relationships between dermatoglyphic, blood genetic, geographic, and linguistic distances were assessed by comparing matrices through Mantel correlations and through partial and multiple correlations. Statistically significant relationships between dermatoglyphics and genetics, genetics and geography, and geography and language were revealed. In addition, significant correlations between dermatoglyphics and geography, with linguistic variation constant, were noted for females but not for males. These results attest to the usefulness of dermatoglyphics in resolving various evolutionary questions concerning normal human variation.     

台湾闽南汉人肤纹学研究

本文报导台湾闽南汉人的肤纹参数,样本包括100名男性和100名女性。研究的项目有TFRC、a-b RC、atd、tPD、指纹、指间纹、手大小鱼际、猿线、指三角等,并且还分析了同名指指纹对应的情况,见到非随机组合的现象。这是对闽南汉人肤纹较详尽的调查,为人类学、遗传学和医学等提供了较完整的肤纹数据。     

Dermatoglyphic studies among the two breeding isolates of Gujjars of northwestern India

Dermatoglyphic studies among two breeding isolates of Gujjars (200 individuals from each population) from northwestern India have been carried out. The distribution of phenotypic frequencies of dermatoglyphic features among the Hindu and Muslim Gujjars provides strong evidence that these populations have become distinct in the course of their history. This could have occurred due to the inflow of genes from Muslim invaders and surrounding populations or from the effects of inbreeding and biosocial and geographical isolation of the Muslim Gujjars from their counterpart, the Hindu Gujjars. However, the frequency distribution of dermatoglyphics of the Hindu Gujjars resembles those of the Rajputs, Jats, and Ahirs, suggesting an infrequent inflow of genes from neighboring populations and probably their recent isolation. Sexual dimorphism for dermatoglyphics has also been observed in both Hindu and Muslim Gujjar populations.