Was the C282Y mutation an Irish Gaelic mutation that the Vikings help disseminate?

Whittington, Chris

doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2006.06.013

Cited by 8 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Hemochromatosis is a disease characterized by iron overload which has been associated with the C282Y (and H63D) mutation. This mutation has probably arisen in either a Celtic or a Viking ancestor some 60 generations ago [8,9]. Clinical symptoms of hemochromatosis show a marked gender difference predominantly affecting men.…”

Section: Why Was Ireland Struck More Than the Continent?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic Aspects of Scurvy and the European Famine of 1845–1848

et al. 2013

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The view of scurvy being exclusively a nutritional disorder needs to be updated. Genetic polymorphisms of HFE and haptoglobin (Hp) may explain the geographic variability of mortality caused by the European famine of the mid-19th century. In this period, potatoes had fallen victim to the potato blight and Ireland was more severely hit than continental Europe. Hereditary hemochromatosis is a genetic disorder with mutations in the HFE gene, characterized by iron overload (with a reduced vitamin C stability) and with a predominance of affected men. The Irish have the world’s highest frequency of the C282Y mutation and the particular iron metabolism of the Irish helps to understand the size of the catastrophe and the observed overrepresentation of male skeletons showing scurvy. Hp is a plasma α2-glycoprotein characterized by 3 common phenotypes (Hp 1-1, Hp 2-1 and Hp 2-2). When the antioxidant capacity of Hp is insufficient, its role is taken over by hemopexin and vitamin C. The relative number of scurvy victims corresponds with the Hp 2-2 frequency, which is associated with iron conservation and has an impact on vitamin C stability. As iron is more abundant in males, males are overrepresented in the group of skeletons showing scurvy signs.

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Section: Why Was Ireland Struck More Than the Continent?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Genetic Aspects of Scurvy and the European Famine of 1845–1848

et al. 2013

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“…Although it is unclear when and where this person lived (5), most of the descendants are found along north Atlantic coast lines and in countries with emigrants of this origin (5, 6). The peak C282Y frequency is met in Ireland (7–10) and Scotland (11), which has suggested an Irish Celtic origin (12, 13), but a high frequency has also been reported from Scandinavia (14), suggesting a Viking origin (7, 15–17). An Irish origin with a further spread by the Vikings has also been proposed (13).…”

mentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The peak C282Y frequency is met in Ireland (7–10) and Scotland (11), which has suggested an Irish Celtic origin (12, 13), but a high frequency has also been reported from Scandinavia (14), suggesting a Viking origin (7, 15–17). An Irish origin with a further spread by the Vikings has also been proposed (13). While the A3‐B7 haplotype usually has been regarded as the original haplotype (5), the A3‐B14 haplotype has also been mentioned in studies from Brittany (18) and Sweden (19).…”

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confidence: 96%

“…Even though the scale and nature of Viking settlements in Ireland has been questioned (25), the Vikings have played a prominent role in Irish history between AD 795 and 1200 (16, 25). To test the hypothesis of an Irish origin of C282Y and its further spread by Vikings (13), we studied a population living on the west coast of Sweden, the part of the country that faces the common North Sea (Fig. 1).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We tried to test the Irish findings of the linkage between HLA‐A3 and the C282Y. If the C282Y mutation was imported to Scandinavia from its Irish Celtic origin, there would be less time for recombinations to take place in the new land (13). HLA haplotypes of Swedish patients was therefore studied and compared to a ‘Celtic’ series (4).…”

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Was the C282Y mutation an Irish Gaelic mutation that the Vikings helped disseminate?*

Olsson

Konar

Dufva

et al. 2010

European Journal of Haematology

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Genomic and Strontium Isotope Variation Reveal Immigration Patterns in a Viking Age Town

Krzewińska

Kjellström

Günther³

et al. 2018

Current Biology

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The impact of human mobility on the northern European urban populations during the Viking and Early Middle Ages and its repercussions in Scandinavia itself are still largely unexplored. Our study of the demographics in the final phase of the Viking era is the first comprehensive multidisciplinary investigation that includes genetics, isotopes, archaeology, and osteology on a larger scale. This early Christian dataset is particularly important as the earlier common pagan burial tradition during the Iron Age was cremation, hindering large-scale DNA analyses. We present genome-wide sequence data from 23 individuals from the 10 to 12 century Swedish town of Sigtuna. The data revealed high genetic diversity among the early urban residents. The observed variation exceeds the genetic diversity in distinct modern-day and Iron Age groups of central and northern Europe. Strontium isotope data suggest mixed local and non-local origin of the townspeople. Our results uncover the social system underlying the urbanization process of the Viking World of which mobility was an intricate part and was comparable between males and females. The inhabitants of Sigtuna were heterogeneous in their genetic affinities, probably reflecting both close and distant connections through an established network, confirming that early urbanization processes in northern Europe were driven by migration.

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Was the C282Y mutation an Irish Gaelic mutation that the Vikings help disseminate?

Cited by 8 publications

References 16 publications

Genetic Aspects of Scurvy and the European Famine of 1845–1848

Genetic Aspects of Scurvy and the European Famine of 1845–1848

Was the C282Y mutation an Irish Gaelic mutation that the Vikings helped disseminate?*

Genomic and Strontium Isotope Variation Reveal Immigration Patterns in a Viking Age Town

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