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Molecular genealogy of Tusi Lu’s family reveals their paternal relationship with Jochi, Genghis Khan’s eldest son

Journal of Human Genetics volume 64, pages 815–820 (2019)Cite this article

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Abstract

Genghis Khan’s lineage has attracted both academic and general interest because of its mystery and large influence. However, the truth behind the mystery is complicated and continues to confound the scientific study. In this study, we surveyed the molecular genealogy of Northwestern China’s Lu clan who claim to be the descendants of the sixth son of Genghis Khan, Toghan. We also investigated living members of the Huo and Tuo clans, who, according to oral tradition, were close male relatives of Lu clan. Using network analysis, we found that the Y-chromosomal haplotypes of Lu clan mainly belong to haplogroup C2b1a1b1-F1756, widely prevalent in Altaic-speaking populations, and are closely related to the Tore clan from Kazakhstan, who claim to be the descendants of the first son of Genghis Khan, Jochi. The most recent common ancestor of the special haplotype cluster that includes the Lu clan and Tore clan lived about 1000 years ago (YA), while the Huo and Tuo clans do not share any Y lineages with the Lu clan. In addition to the reported lineages, such as C3*-Star Cluster, R1b-M343, and Q, our results indicate that haplogroup C2b1a1b1-F1756 might be another candidate of the true Y lineage of Genghis Khan.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful for the trust of the sample donors. This work was supported by the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2018M640332), Scientific and Technology Committee of Shanghai Municipality (18490750300), National Natural Science Foundation of China (91731303, 81671874, 31760309, 31771325, 91631105, and 31801040), Nanqiang Outstanding Young Talents Program of Xiamen University (X2123302), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (ZK1144), MOE Research Program Foundation of Humanities and Social Sciences (18YJAZH116), Scientific Research Project for Colleges of Gansu province (2017B-34), Major Project of Gansu Institute of Political Science and Law (2017XZD10), and 111 Project (B13016).

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally: Shao-Qing Wen, Hong-Bing Yao

Authors and Affiliations

  1. MOE Key Laboratory of Contemporary Anthropology and B&R International Joint Laboratory for Eurasian Anthropology, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, 200438, Shanghai, China

    Shao-Qing Wen, Pan-Xin Du, Lan-Hai Wei, Xin-Zhu Tong, Ling-Xiang Wang, Chuan-Chao Wang, Bo-Yan Zhou, Jiucun Wang, Li Jin & Hui Li

  2. Institute of Archaeological Science, Fudan University, 200433, Shanghai, China

    Shao-Qing Wen

  3. Key Laboratory of Evidence Science of Gansu Province, Gansu Institute of Political Science and Law, 730070, Lanzhou, China

    Hong-Bing Yao

  4. Department of Anthropology and Ethnology Institute of Anthropology, Xiamen University, 361005, Xiamen, China

    Lan-Hai Wei & Chuan-Chao Wang

  5. Institute of the Investigation School of Criminal Justice, China University of Political Science and Law, 100088, Beijing, China

    Mei-Sen Shi

  6. National Center for Biotechnology, Astana, 010000, Kazakhstan

    Maxat Zhabagin

  7. Institut National des Langues et Civilisations Orientales, Centre de Recherches de Linguistique d’Asie Orientale, Institut Universitaire de France, 65 rue des Grands Moulins, 75013, Paris, France

    Dan Xu

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  1. Shao-Qing Wen
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Correspondence to Hui Li.

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Table S1

Y chromosome SNP and STR data of Lu clan, Huo clan, and Tuo clan. The Y chromosomal SNP information and 17 Y-STRs (DYS19, DYS389I/II, DYS390,DYS391, DYS392, DYS393, DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, DYS448, DYS456, DYS458, DYS635, Y-GATA H4, and DYS385a/b) are provided.

Table S2

Y-STR haplotypes of all C2b1a1b1-F1756 included in this study.

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Wen, SQ., Yao, HB., Du, PX. et al. Molecular genealogy of Tusi Lu’s family reveals their paternal relationship with Jochi, Genghis Khan’s eldest son. J Hum Genet 64, 815–820 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s10038-019-0618-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s10038-019-0618-0

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