Han Chinese share gene characteristics with Indians and Europeans, study finds
A large-scale gene sequencing project that collected DNA samples from pregnant Chinese women revealed links to birth outcome and babies’ disease risk
The Han Chinese and ethnic minorities share some common gene mutations with Indians, Southeast Asians and Europeans along the Silk Road, an unprecedented study of DNA samples has found.
In the largest genome sequencing of the Chinese, a group of international scientists studied the gene sets of about 140,000 women in China, uncovering relations between genes and birth outcomes such as the delivery of twins and babies’ risks of certain infectious diseases.
Researchers assembled a representative sample of the entire Chinese population, according to the study, published on Thursday in the journal Cell.
Further analysis of the genomes could reveal valuable information about migration patterns and disease risks in Chinese populations, it said.
The large-scale gene sequencing project was made possible by a technique called non-invasive prenatal testing (NIFT), which requires only a blood sample taken from a pregnant woman, the study said. The procedure has been adopted by millions of expectant mothers around the world to check the fetus’ risk of certain genetic diseases.
“It has been administered to about 6 to 7 million Chinese women and an estimated 10 million women worldwide,” said Liu Siyang, a co-author of the study and a researcher with BGI, a Chinese biotech company.