Characteristics of eight X-STR loci for forensic purposes in the Chinese population

X-chromosomal short tandem repeats (ChrX STRs) loci are used for forensic practice in recent years. Considering the unique heredity characteristics of ChrX, recombination and linkage disequilibrium (LD) among ChrX STR loci vary between male and female and different populations as well. However, there is a lack of data for analysis of recombination and linkage disequilibrium on ChrX STR loci in the Chinese population. In this work, a total of 303 unrelated individuals (203 males and 100 females) in the Chinese Han population were analyzed with Mentype Argus X-8 PCR amplification kit (DXS10135-DXS8378, DXS7132-DXS10074, HPRTB-DXS10101, and DXS10134-DXS7423). The recombination and linkage disequilibrium of the eight ChrX STR loci were investigated with HapMap LD plots and software ARLEQUIN 3.1. Allele frequencies of the eight loci and further population forensic genetic parameters were obtained. Our results revealed hotspots for recombination, and there was no obvious evidence for LD among the eight loci in the Chinese population. Our work implied that single locus frequencies rather than haplotype frequencies should be applied for forensic practice in the Chinese population.