Multivariate quantitative genetic simulations in anthropology with an example from the South Pacific.

Computer simulation is a commonly used tool both in genetic epidemiology and in anthropological genetics. We describe here various methods for simulating multivariate quantitative genetic evolution and apply these methods in an analysis of craniometrics from two Pacific island samples. The results of this application indicate that the two samples (one from the Tolai and one from the Moriori) are significantly different, even when allowing for founder effect, intense selection on founders, and genetic drift. The simulation methods we describe and use are commonly applied in animal breeding studies and are much more efficient and general than the multilocus gene-dropping technique usually used in anthropological genetics simulations.