Genetic variation of 15 autosomal STR loci in Upper (Southern) Egyptians.

A sample of 265 unrelated individuals inhabiting five governorates in Upper (south) Egypt was collected with informed consent. The samples were amplified using the AmpFlSTR IdentifilerPCR Amplification Kit (containing 15 loci: D8S1179, D21S11, D7S820, CSF1PO, D3S1358, TH01, D13S317, D16S539, D2S1338, D19S433, vWA, TPOX, D18S51, D5S818 and FGA), and genotyped subsequent to capillary electrophoresis. Statistical analysis of the generated data indicated neither departure from expectation of Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium (HWE) in most of the tested loci nor dependence of alleles between loci. All tested loci were polymorphic; the most discriminating is D18S51 while the least is TPOX. The combined power of exclusion was 0.99999868 and the combined match probability was 1.93x10(-18). The genetic diversity of the Upper Egyptians was compared with those of other populations at the local, regional and global levels.