Y-STR typing of an Austrian population sample using a 17-loci multiplex PCR assay.

Y-chromosomal STR haplotypes were determined from a sample of 135 unrelated men and 70 sons from Tirol (Austria) using the AmpFlSTR Yfiler PCR amplification kit (Applied Biosystems) that coamplifies 17 Y-STRs. The panel of markers includes the 9-loci European minimal haplotype (minHt) and, in addition, the markers DYS437, DYS438, DYS439, DYS448, DYS456, DYS458, DYS635 (Y GATA C4) and Y GATA H4. A total of 130 different haplotypes (125 were unique) were identified by the 17 Y-STR markers, an increase of 19 compared with the minHt. The gene diversity of DYS635, DYS456 and DYS458 exceeded 0.75 and only that of the duplicated marker DYS385 (0.86) was higher. Consistently high haplotype diversity values were found in all tested Y-SNP haplogroups. Because the simultaneous analysis of 17 Y-STR systems offers a high power of discrimination at minimum sample consumption, the Yfiler kit is a promising tool for forensic applications.