Ethnic differences in allele distribution for the IL8 and IL1B genes in populations from eastern India.

Populations from eastern India have been examined for the allele distribution at polymorphic sites in the IL8 and IL1B genes. Significant differences in allele frequencies between caste and tribal population groups were observed. However, there are no differences in allele frequencies among various subpopulations within caste or tribal groups. We argue that different caste populations from the same geographic location can be pooled for the purpose of population association studies.