Haplogroup A (mtDNA)

In human mitochondrial genetics, Haplogroup A is a human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroup.

Origin

Haplogroup A is believed to have arisen in Asia some 30,000–50,000 years BC. Its ancestral haplogroup was Haplogroup N. However, the extant diversity of mitochondrial genomes that belong to Haplogroup A is low relative to the degree of divergence from its nearest outgroups in haplogroup N, which suggests that extant members of Haplogroup A might be descended from a population that has emerged from a bottleneck approximately 20,000 years ago.
Its highest frequencies are among Native Americans, its largest overall population is in East Asia, and its greatest variety is in East Asia. Thus, it might have originated in and spread from the Far East.

Distribution

Its subclade A2 shares a T16362C mutation with subclades A1, A6, A12'23, A13'14, A15, A16, A17, A18, A19, A20, A21, A22, A24, A25, and A26. A2 is found in Chukotko–Kamchatka and is also one of five mtDNA haplogroups found in the indigenous peoples of the Americas, the others being B, C, D, and X.
Haplogroup A2 is the most common haplogroup among the Inuit, Na-Dene, and many Amerind ethnic groups of North and Central America. Lineages belonging to haplogroup A2 also comprise the majority of the mtDNA pool of the Inuit and their neighbors, the Chukchis, in northeasternmost Siberia.
Other branches of haplogroup A are less frequent but widespread among other populations of Asia. Haplogroup A5 is rather limited to populations from Korea and Japan southward, though it has been detected as singletons in a pair of large samples of Khamnigans and Buryats from the Buryat Republic.
In Asia, A is especially frequent in Tibeto-Burman-speaking populations of Southwest China, such as Tibetans. Approximately 7% to 15% of Koreans belong to haplogroup A. Approximately 5% to 12% of the Japanese belong to haplogroup A. Approximately 4% to 13% of Mongols belong to haplogroup A, almost all of whom are contained within the A4 subclade. Approximately 3% to 9% of Chinese people belong to haplogroup A. Haplogroup A also has been found in Vietnamese. Approximately 4% of Tatars from Aznakayevo, 3% of Tatars from Buinsk, and 2% of Turkish people belong to haplogroup A. Haplogroup A4 has been found in 2.4% of a sample of Persians from eastern Iran and in 2.3% of a sample of Tajiks from Tajikistan. Haplogroup A is not found among Austronesians. In Nepalese population except Sherpa, haplogroup A was mirrored by its clades, A27, A14 and A17, of which A27 was the most abundant clade in Newar. Newly defined clade A27 only discerned so far in Newar and Nepali-mix coalesce at ~ 8.4 Kya suggesting their ancient origin and potentially in situ differentiation in Nepal.

Subclades

Tree

This phylogenetic tree of haplogroup A subclades is based on the paper by Mannis van Oven and Manfred Kayser Updated comprehensive phylogenetic tree of global human mitochondrial DNA variation and subsequent published research.

A
* A — China, Buryat
** A+T152C!+T16362C — Uyghur, Korea, Japan, Vietnam
*** A1
**** A1* — Japan, Korea
**** A1a
***** A1a* — Japan, Sarikoli, USA, England
***** A1a1
****** A1a1* — Buryat, Altai Kizhi
****** A1a1a — Buryat, Mongol
***** A1a2 — Russia, Iran
***** A1a3 — Greece, United States
*** A2 — Ache, Waiwai, Zoro, Surui, Waiapi, Poturujara, Kayapo, Katuena, Guarani, Arsario, Cayapa, Dogrib, ancient Canada, USA, Mexico, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Argentina
**** A2a — Eskimo, Chukchi
***** A2a1 — Inuit, Selkup
***** A2a2 — Eskimo, Chukchi
***** A2a3 — Eskimo, Chukchi
***** A2a4 — USA, Mexico
***** A2a5 — Apache, USA, Canada
**** A2b — Chukchi
***** A2b1 — Chukchi, Koryak, Eskimo
**** A2c
**** A2d — USA
***** A2d1 — USA
****** A2d1a — USA
***** A2d2 — USA
**** A2e'ao
***** A2e
***** A2ao
****** A2ao1
**** A2f
***** A2f1 — Newfoundland
****** A2f1a — Canada, USA
***** A2f2 — USA, Mexico
***** A2f3 — USA
**** A2g — USA, Mexico, Iberian Peninsula
***** A2g1 — USA, Latin America
**** A2h — Colombia, Yanomama, Kogui
***** A2h1 — USA, Mexico, Latin America
**** A2i — USA, Canada
**** A2j — USA
***** A2j1 — USA
**** A2k — USA
***** A2k1 — Ecuador, Wayuu, Mexico
****** A2k1a — Venezuela, Colombia, USA
**** A2l'm'n'o'ai'aj
***** A2l
***** A2m
***** A2n — Canada
***** A2o
***** A2ai
***** A2aj
**** A2p'am
***** A2p
****** A2p1
****** A2p2
***** A2am — USA, Venezuela. One ancient DNA found in Curaçao, in a Dabajuroid site dating 1160-1500 CE.
**** A2q
***** A2q1
**** A2r — USA, Cuba
***** A2r1 — Mexico, USA
**** A2s
**** A2t — USA
**** A2u
***** A2u1
***** A2u2
**** A2v
***** A2v1 — USA, Mexico
****** A2v1a — Guatemala, USA
****** A2v1b — Mexico
****** A2v1i — USA, Mexico
**** A2w — Colombia, Arsario, USA
***** A2w1 — Mexico, Cayman Islands, Guatemala, Panama, Colombia
**** A2x
**** A2y
**** A2z — USA
**** A2aa
**** A2ab - Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina
**** A2ac
***** A2ac1
**** A2ad
***** A2ad1
***** A2ad2
**** A2ae
**** A2af
***** A2af1
****** A2af1a
******* A2af1a1
******* A2af1a2
****** A2af1b
******* A2af1b1
******** A2af1b1a
******** A2af1b1b
******* A2af1b2
***** A2af2
**** A2ag
**** A2ah
**** A2ak
**** A2al
**** A2an
**** A2ap
**** A2aq
*** A6
**** A6* — Deng, Korea
**** A6a — China
***** A6a* — Han Chinese
***** A6a1 — Tujia
**** A6b — Tibet
***** A6b* — Tibet
***** A6b1 — Tibet
**** A6c — Tibet
*** A12'23 — Austria, Romania, Poland, Russia, possibly found among Udmurts and Komis
**** A12 — Czech Republic, Germany
***** A12a — Ireland, UK, New Zealand, USA, Nenets, Selkup
****** A12a* — Mansi, Yakut, Kyrgyz
****** A12a1 — Kyordyughen Site, Hungary
****** A12a2 — Evenk
***** A12b — Buryat, Karos-Eperjesszög
**** A23 — Mongol, Buryat, Ket, Qashqai, ancient Scythian
*** A13'14 — Russia, China, Ladakh, Thailand, Vietnam, Korea, Japan, Paraguay, Ireland
**** A13
***** A13a — Thailand, China
***** A13b
****** A13b1 — Uyghur, Taiwan
****** A13b2 — China, Thailand, Vietnam
******* A13b2a — China, Thailand
**** A14 — Russia, Kyrgyz, Uyghur, China, Han Chinese, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam
*** A15 — Uyghur
**** A15a — China, Tibet, Uyghur, Japan
**** A15b — China, Japan
**** A15c — China
***** A15c1 — Naxi, Tibet, Nepal
*** A16 — Buryat, Uyghur, Turk
*** A17 — China, Miao, Yi, Tibet, Ladakh, Kyrgyz, Thailand, Vietnam
*** A18 — Japan, China, Romania
*** A19 — China
*** A20 — Japan, Han Chinese
*** A21 — Tibet, Jammu and Kashmir
*** A22 — China, Han Chinese
*** A24 — China, Turkey, Czech Republic
*** A25 — Japan, China, Yakut
*** A26 — Denmark
** A3 — Japan, Korea, USA
*** A3a — Japan
** A7
*** A7* — China
*** A7a — Tibet
**** A7a* — Lhoba
**** A7a1 — Lhoba
**** A7a2 — Lhoba, Monpa
*** A7b — Japan
** A9
** A11 — Nepal, Korea, Russia
*** A11a — Tibet, Ladakh
*** A11b — Tibet, Naxi, Han
* A5 — China, Japan
** A5a — Japan, Korea, China
*** A5a1 — Korea
**** A5a1a — Japan, Korea
***** A5a1a1 — Japan, Korea
****** A5a1a1a — Japan
****** A5a1a1b — Japan, Korea
***** A5a1a2 — Japan, Korea
****** A5a1a2a — Japan
**** A5a1b — Japan
*** A5a2 — Japan
*** A5a3
**** A5a3* — Korea, USA
**** A5a3a
***** A5a3a* — Japan
***** A5a3a1 — Japan
*** A5a4 — Japan
*** A5a5 — Japan, South Korea, Uyghur
** A5b — China
*** A5b1 — China, Japan, Korea, Uyghur, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore
**** A5b1* — Uyghur
**** A5b1a — Japan, Korea
**** A5b1b — China, Uyghur, Korea
***** A5b1b* — Han Chinese
***** A5b1b1
****** A5b1b1* — Miao
****** A5b1b1a — China
****** A5b1b1b — China
***** A5b1b2 — Uyghur
**** A5b1c — Han Chinese
***** A5b1c1 — Taiwan
**** A5b1d
***** A5b1d* — China
***** A5b1d1 — Siamese, Tay
*** A5b2 — China
** A5c — Japan, Korea, Khamnigan, Buryat, Barghut
*** A5c1 — Japan
* A8 — Uyghur
** A8a — Okunev culture, Ket, Selkup, Pakistan, Poland, Italy
*** A8a* — Han Chinese, Korean
*** A8a1 — Hungary, Albania
**** A8a1* — Uyghur, Poland, USA
**** A8a1a — Yakut, Uyghur, Buryat
*** A8a2
**** A8a2a — Kets, Tofalar
**** A8a2b — Tuvan, Poland
** A8b — Koryak
* A10 — China, Afghanistan, Russia, France, Canada, New York

Popular culture

The mummy "Juanita" of Peru, also called the "Ice Maiden", has been shown to belong to mitochondrial haplogroup A.
In his popular book The Seven Daughters of Eve, Bryan Sykes named the originator of this mtDNA haplogroup Aiyana.
Eva Longoria, an American actress of Mexican descent, belongs to Haplogroup A2. Michelle Rodriguez, an American actress with a Dominican mother, is likewise in A2.