Bűnügyi Szakértői és Kutatóintézet

This study focuses on exploring the uniparental genetic lineages of Hungarian-speaking minorities residing in rural villages of Baranja (Croatia) and the Zobor region (Slovakia). We aimed to identify ancestral lineages by examining genetic markers distributed across the entire mitogenome and on the Y-chromosome. This allowed us to discern disparities in regional genetic structures within these communities. By integrating our newly acquired genetic data from a total of 168 participants with pre-existing Eurasian and ancient DNA datasets, our goal was to enrich the understanding of the genetic history trajectories of Carpathian Basin populations. Our findings suggest that while population-based analyses may not be sufficiently robust to detect fine-scale uniparental genetic patterns with the sample sizes at hand, phylogenetic analysis of well-characterized Y-chromosomal Short Tandem Repeat (STR) data and entire mitogenome sequences did uncover multiple lineage ties to far-flung regions and eras. While the predominant portions of both paternal and maternal DNA align with the East-Central European spectrum, rarer subhaplogroups and lineages have unveiled ancient ties to both prehistoric and historic populations spanning Europe and Eastern Eurasia. This research augments the expansive field of phylogenetics, offering critical perspectives on the genetic constitution and heritage of the communities in East-Central Europe.

Abstract This study focuses on exploring the uniparental genetic lineage of Hungarian-speaking minorities residing in rural villages of Baranja (Croatia) and the Zobor region (Slovakia). We aimed at identifying ancestral lineages by examining genetic markers distributed across the entire mitogenome and on the Y-chromosome. This allowed us to discern disparities in regional genetic structures within these communities. By integrating our newly acquired genetic data from a total of 168 participants with pre-existing Eurasian and ancient DNA datasets, our goal was to enrich the understanding of the genetic history trajectories of Carpathian Basin populations. Our findings suggest that while population-based analyses may not be sufficiently robust to detect fine-scale uniparental genetic patterns with the sample sizes at hand, phylogenetic analysis of Short Tandem Repeat (STR) data and entire mitogenome sequences did uncover multiple lineage ties to far-flung regions and eras. While the predominant portions of both paternal and maternal DNA align with the East-Central European spectrum, rarer subhaplogroups and lineages have unveiled ancient ties to both prehistoric and historic populations spanning Europe and Eastern Eurasia. This research augments the expansive field of phylogenetics, offering critical perspectives on the genetic constitution and heritage of the communities of East-Central Europe.

EDITORIAL article Front. Genet., 24 January 2023Sec. Evolutionary and Population Genetics Volume 14 - 2023 | https://doi.org/10.3389/fgene.2023.1130104

We have successfully demonstrated that although there are significant analytical challenges involved in the qualitative discrimination analysis of sub-mm sized (microfragment) glass samples, the task can be solved with very good accuracy and reliability with the multivariate chemometric evaluation of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) data or in combination with pre-screening based on refractive index (RI) data. In total, 127 glass samples of four types (fused silica, flint, borosilicate and soda–lime) were involved in the tests. Four multivariate chemometric data evaluation methods (linear discrimination analysis, quadratic discrimination analysis, classification tree and random forest) for LIBS data were evaluated with and without data compression (principal component analysis). Classification tree and random forest methods were found to give the most consistent and most accurate results, with classifications/identifications correct in 92 to 99% of the cases for soda–lime glasses. The developed methods can be used in forensic analysis.

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper.

Y-DNA and mtDNA have been a widely used tool not only in forensic genetic applications but in human evolutionary and population genetic studies. Its paternal or maternal inheritance and lack of recombination have offered the opportunity to explore genealogical relationships among individuals and to study the frequency differences of paternal and maternal clades among human populations at continental and regional levels. It is unbelievable, but true, that the disadvantages of paternal and maternal lineages in forensic genetic studies, i.e., everyone within a family have the same paternal or maternal haplotype and haplogroup, become advantages in human evolutionary studies, i.e., reveal the genetic history of successful mothers and successful fathers. Thanks to these amazing properties of haploid markers, they provide tools for mapping the migration routes of human populations during prehistoric and historical periods, separately as maternal and paternal lineages, and together as the genetic history of a population.

István Sándor was a monk and deeply impressed by the spirituality of the Salesian Society. On 24 July 1946 he made his perpetual votes as a Salesian brother. In 1950 the Communist Party banned the operation of religious orders including the Salesian Order. In 1951 the Internal Security Corps was informed about "illegal" activity of István Sándor. He was arrested on 28 July 1952 and sentenced to death by hanging. He was beatified by Pope Francis in 2013. On 12 November 2018 the grave was opened and bones extracted belonging to six individuals. First, forensic anthropological studies were done. For DNA analysis, teeth and right femurs were selected. DNA extraction method was developed by us. Y-chromosomal and autosomal STR profiles were determined from teeth and bones and reference samples. Based on age and height estimates, the bones that could not belong to István Sándor were excluded. The Blessed István Sándor does not have any living relatives. Envelopes and postage stamps were chosen as reference samples from the years 1942 and 1950. We have received full DNA profiles from teeth, but partial profiles from the envelope and the stamp. Genetic investigations performed support the hypothesis that the bone remains, which were exhumed from the mass grave including relics of putative István Sándor, really belong to the Blessed István Sándor who was executed on 08 June 1953 by the Communist Regime.

According to genetic studies, the Hungarian Y-chromosomal gene pool significantly differs from other Uralic-speaking populations. Hungarians possess a significant frequency of haplogroup R1a-Z280 and a low frequency of haplogroup N-Tat, which is common among other Uralic-speaking populations. Based on this evidence, we further worked to define the links between the linguistically related Hungarian, Mansi and Bashkirian Mari populations. Samples were collected from 45 Bashkirian Mari and 36 Southern Mansi males in the Ural region. We analyzed male-specific markers including 23 STRs and 36 SNPs, which reflect past and recent paternal genetic history. We found that the haplogroup distribution of the two population samples showed high genetic similarity to each other except for the N-Tat* and R1a-Z93 haplogroups in the Bashkirian Mari males. On the MDS plots constructed from Fst- and Rst-genetic distances, the Bashkirian Mari and Southern Mansi population groups showed close genetic affinities with the Khanty, Northern Mansi, Mari, and Estonian populations. For phylogenetic studies, networks were constructed for the most frequent haplogroups in both populations together with other Eurasian populations. Both populations shared common haplotypes within haplogroups R1a-Z280 or N-L1034 with Hungarian speakers, suggesting a common paternal genetic footprint that arose in prehistoric or historic times. Overall, the Hungarian, Mansi, and Bashkirian Mari populations have a much more complex genetic history than the traditional linguistic model or history would suggest. Further studies are needed to clarify the common genetic profiles may have been acquired directly or indirectly during the more or less known their history.

Aedes albopictus is an important vector of several diseases including dengue- and Chikungunya fever and is a potential vector of Zika-fever. The invasion dynamics of Aedes albopictus was reconsidered by comparing the temperature-related development of the mosquito with the observed real geographical distribution in Florida and in Italy. The potential number of generations and the annual dispersal distances of the mosquito were calculated for the estimates. The estimated total dispersals are 3.6-4.6 km/year/generation in Italy and 4.6-5.3 km/year/generation in Florida, values that are at least five to six times higher than those derived from release and recapture studies and from the previously measured flying distances of female Asian tiger mosquitoes. Subtracting the calculated dispersal distances with the known active dispersal of female Ae. albopictus, the passive dispersal component of the total dispersal distances was found to be 2.8-4.1 km/year/generation in Italy and 3.8-4.8 km/year/generation in Florida. Our results confirm that the active dispersal of female mosquitoes plays a secondary role in determining the rate of areal expansion and, in contrast, passive factors may play a primary role. It was concluded, based on similar average values of the passive dispersal distances of the mosquito in Florida and Italy, that at large spatial scales the anthropogenic component can be well estimated.