The gene pool of the Belgorod oblast population: II. “Family name portraits” in groups of districts with different degrees of subdivision and the role of migrations in their formation
AbstractThe frequencies and spectra of surnames have been analyzed in groups of raions (districts) of the Belgorod oblast (region) with different degrees of population subdivision. The “family name portraits” of districts with low (0.00003 < < f*r < 0.00022, 
$$\overline {f_r^ * } $$
 = 0.00015) and moderate (0.00023 < f*r < 0.00042, 
$$\overline {f_r^ * } $$
 = 0.00029) inbreeding levels are similar both to each other and to the “family name portrait” of the Belgorod oblast as a whole. Districts with high subdivision levels (0.00043 < f*r < 0.00125, 
$$\overline {f_r^ * } $$
 = 0.00072) had very distinctive surname spectra and the highest surname frequencies. Intense immigration to the Belgorod oblast significantly affects its population genetic structure, decreasing the population subdivision.
Analysis of the level of population endogamia as the basis of population-genetic and medical-genetic studies
Background: When conducting population-genetic and genetic-epidemiological studies, the endogamy index should be taken into account to assess the level of the elementary population, characteristics of the migration activity of the population and the degree of isolation of the population. The aim of the study: To assess the level of endogamy among the entire population of the Belgorod region in the modern period of time. Materials and methods: Based on 11052 marriage records of the Registry Office in the Belgorod region for 2016-2018, the endogamy index was studied among the entire population in all administrative units of the Belgorod region – 21 districts. The endogamy index was calculated on the basis of data on the place of birth of spouses, as the proportion of husbands and wives born in a given population. Results: It was found that in the district populations of the Belgorod region, the endogamy index at the district level varied from 0.33 to 0.68 with an average value for the region of 0.46, which is within the range of variability of this indicator among the Russian populations of the Russian Federation. At present, the endogamy of regional populations, which include big and large cities, exceeds this indicator among the rural population. For highly urbanized districts of the region, the size of the elementary population corresponds to the administrative boundaries of the district, while for the rural population, the size of the elementary population exceeds the boundaries of the district. It should be noted that the reduced values of this indicator for the rural population correspond to general migration trends. An increase in the inflow of migrants to the regional populations of the Belgorod region leads to a decrease in the endogamy index, as evidenced by the established inverse correlations between the number of migrants per 1000 inhabitants over three time periods (1990, 2000, and 2019) and the endogamy index. Conclusion: The populations of the Belgorod region are characterized by high migration activity, which leads to a decrease in the level of endogamy among the population. At present, the size of the elementary population in the Belgorod region corresponds to the area or slightly exceeds it.
Archaeological Survey of Dangoyama Kofun by 3DGPR
We presented a three-dimensional ground penetrating radar (3DGPR) system for the archeological investigation in a harsh site, where we have to deal with many trees and/or great topographic variations. This system consists of a commercial GPR system with a laser positioning system. With this system, we can move the GPR antenna freely, on which a positioning detector can record accurate position for each GPR data trace. We applied our 3DGPR system at Dangoyama Kofun, a burial mound, in Fukushima prefecture, Japan. A lot of trees and bushes covered the survey area and cannot be cut. We acquired six datasets in two days in this area. We successfully imaged the boundary between the original surface of the burial mound and the covering soil clearly at about 0.3 m depth around the mound. Furthermore, we found some strong reflections appeared at 0.8 m depth in the top area of the mound, which can be from the artificial parts of the burial mound. The results would greatly aid the following archaeological excavation. In addition, we compared the non-interpolated depth slice with interpolated depth slice at same position and demonstrated that the interpolation process on threedimensional GPR data may introduce some artifacts which might mislead our interpretation.