Ancient DNA was extracted from 13 skeletal remains from the burial groups of Khitan nobles, which were excavated in northeast China. The hypervariable segment Ⅰ sequences （ HVS Ⅰ ） of the mitochondrial DNA control region, in the 13 individuals, were used as genetic markers to determine the genetic relationships between the individuals and the genetic affinity to other interrelated populations by using the known database of mtDNA. Based on the phylogenetic analysis of these ancient DNA sequences, the genetic structures of two Khitan noble kindreds were obtained, including the Yel Yuzhi＇s kindred and the Xiao He＇s kindred. Furthermore, the relationships between the Khitan nobles and some modern interrelated populations were analyzed. On the basis of the result of the analysis, the gene flows of the ancient Khitans and their demographic expansion in history was deduced.
XU YueZHANG Xiao-leiCUI Yin-qiuZHANG Quan-chaoZHOU HuiZHU Hong
A study of the genetic structure of an ancient human excavated from the Yikeshu site of Yuanshangdu ancient city in Inner Mongolia and the relationships between the ancient population and the extant populations was carried out. Sequences of the control region and coding region of mtDNA from the ancient human were analyzed by using direct sequencing and restriction-fragment length polymorphism （RFLP） methods, Phylogenetic analysis and multidimensional scaling analysis were also performed on the mtDNA data of the ancient population and 12 extant populations. These results show that the ancient individuals of Yikeshu site can be assigned to D, G, B and Z haplogroups that are prevalent in Duars and Mongolians from Inner Mongolia. The ancient population is also closer to Duar and Mongolian populations in genetic distance than other compared populations. This study reveals that the ancient population from Yikeshu site in the Yuan Dynasty shares a common ancestor with Mongolic-speaking Daur and Mongolian tribes.
FU Yu-qinXU Xue-lianZHANG Xiao-leiZHANG Quan-chaoZHOU HuiZHU Hong
