Distribution of Gd- alleles in some ethnic groups of the USSR.

A population study of Gd- allele distribution was made in similar (age-sex) samples of schoolchildren and students from different ethnic groups: Russians, Ashkenazi Jews, and Azerbaijanians. Both the frequency and the spectrum of the Gd- alleles were quite different. The Gd- frequency in Russians (Kostroma region) was 0.36%; in Ashkenazim (Gomel region), 0.91%; in Azerbaijanians (Sheki region and Apsheron region), 3.6% and 10.5%, respectively. G6PD deficiency in Russians is represented by familial forms; in Ashkenazi Jews by class II alleles Kirovograd and Zhitomir; and in Azerbaijanians, by a wide spectrum of class II and III alleles. Genetic factors involved in the formation of Gd- allele frequencies and the spectrum in these three ethnic groups are discussed.