Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis is a genetic marker for human identification, especially matrilineal inheritance. Hypervariable regions (HVR) I and II of mtDNA have been currently performed for human identification worldwide. Further examination of HVRIII has been conducted with the aim of enhancing the power of discrimination. The aim of this research is to provide informative data on the polymorphisms of HVRIII in the Thai population in order to establish a national database for human identification. Thai people who were unrelated through the maternal lineage were recruited for blood collections. The mtDNA was extracted by Chelex extraction, amplified by polymerase chain reaction, and analyzed using Sequencing Analysis Software. The most common mutation in HVRIII was base substitution, followed by deletion and insertion. We discovered 40 unique haplotypes, with haplotype 489C being the most frequent. The haplotype diversity, power of discrimination, and random match probability were 0.8014, 0.7987, and 0.2013, respectively. Five-CA repeats were the most frequently observed in nucleotide positions 514-523. Our database can be employed as supplementary markers in addition to nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) markers in forensic investigations. Moreover, the data could potentially enhance genetic identification and anthropological genetics research in Thailand.
Keywords: Thai population; control region; hypervariable region; mitochondrial DNA.