The population genetic structure of China (through noninvasive prenatal testing)
This week a big whole genome analysis of China was published in Cell, Genomic Analyses from Non-invasive Prenatal Testing Reveal Genetic Associations, Patterns of Viral Infections, and Chinese Population History. The abstract: We analyze whole-genome sequencing data from 141,431 Chinese women generated for non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT). We use these data to characterize the population […]
The lineage of the ancient sage kings
After recording the “India genetics” podcast for The Insight and reading Early China: A Social and Cultural History, I wonder what surprises we’re going to get from China from ancient DNA when it comes online. If there is one thing we are learning by looking closely at DNA, modern and ancient, it’s that at least […]
India vs. China, genetically diverse vs. homogeneous
About 36% of the world’s population are citizens of the Peoples’ Republic of China and the Republic of India. Including the other nations of South Asia (Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc.), 43% of the population lives in China and/or South Asia. But, as David Reich mentions in Who We Are and How We Got Here China is […]
Hui have a lot of West Eurasian Y chromosomes
O C R1a R1b R2 E1b G H I1 I2 J1 J2 L N Q T Total N Han 258 12 2 2 2 1 1 2 1 1 7 9 2 300 Hui 24 7 21 1 9 1 3 1 1 4 1 11 1 3 14 4 106 Tibetan 49 11 18 […]
The great genetic map and history of China
About 20 percent of the world’s population is Chinese (and since over 90% of Chinese citizens are ethnically Han, so by Chinese here I mean Han to a first approximation). In comparison to other non-European groups a fair amount of genetics research has been done with Chinese populations. But in comparison to their overall numbers, […]
How Chinese genetics is like Chinese food
Representatives of Szechuan and Shangdong cuisine
The Pith: The Han Chinese are genetically diverse, due to geographic scale of range, hybridization with other populations, and possibly local adaptation.
In the USA we often speak of “Chinese fo…