Description
Mitochondrial haplogroup B2 is one of the five founding Native American mtDNA haplogroups (A, B, C, D, X) and is derived from the pan-Asian haplogroup B4a. B2 is found throughout the Americas, from the Arctic to the southern tip of South America, and is particularly common in Central and South America where it reaches frequencies of 20–40% in many indigenous populations. B2 arose in Beringia or soon after the initial peopling of the Americas approximately 15,000–20,000 years ago and diversified extensively throughout the New World, giving rise to numerous sub-lineages specific to different indigenous American populations.
Interesting Fact
Haplogroup B2 is notably absent from most Na-Dene and Eskimo-Aleut speaking populations in North America, while being prevalent among all other Native American groups. This gap corresponds to the genetic and linguistic distinction of these northern populations, who represent a later migration wave from Asia distinct from the founding First Peoples migration.
Distribution by Ethnicity
| Ethnic distribution | Region | Frequency | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quechua | South America | n=300 | |
| Maya | Central America | n=200 | |
| Mexican indigenous | North America | n=400 | |
| Mapuche | South America | n=150 | |
| Navajo | North America | n=100 | |
| Ojibwe | North America | n=120 |
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References
- Torroni et al. (1993) — Asian affinities and continental radiation of the four founding Native American mtDNAs. American Journal of Human Genetics 53(3), 563–590.
- Tamm et al. (2007) — Beringian standstill and spread of Native American founders. PLOS ONE 2(9), e829.
- Perego et al. (2010) — The initial peopling of the Americas: a growing number of founding mitochondrial genomes from Beringia. Genome Research 20(9), 1174–1179.