Target Capture Reveals the Complex Origin of Vietnamese Ginseng.

The global market of the medicinal plant ginseng is worth billions of dollars. Many ginseng species are threatened in the wild and effective sustainable development initiatives are necessary to preserve biodiversity at species and genetic level whilst meeting the demand for medicinal produce. This is also the case of Panax vietnamensis Ha & Grushv., an endemic and threatened ginseng species in Vietnam that is locally cultivated at different scales and has been the object of national breeding programs. To investigate the genetic diversity within cultivated and wild populations of P. vietnamensis we captured 353 nuclear markers using the Angiosperm-353 probe set. Genetic diversity and population structure were evaluated for 319 individuals of Vietnamese ginseng across its area of distribution and from wild and a varying range of cultivated areas. In total, 319 individuals were sampled. After filtering, 1,181 SNPs were recovered. From the population statistics, we observe high genetic diversity and high genetic flow between populations. This is also supported by the STRUCTURE analysis. The intense gene flow between populations and very low genetic differentiation is observed regardless of the populations' wild or cultivated status. High levels of admixture from two ancestral populations exist in both wild and cultivated samples. The high gene flow between populations can be attributed to ancient and on-going practices of cultivation, which exist in a continuum from understorey, untended breeding to irrigated farm cultivation and to trade and exchange activities. These results highlight the importance of partnering with indigenous peoples and local communities and taking their knowledge into account for biodiversity conservation and sustainable development of plants of high cultural value.

CYP2C19 genetic polymorphism in the Vietnamese population.

Background: Genetic polymorphism of CYP2C19 has been shown to affect enzyme activity and thereby contribute to inter-individual variability in drug metabolism and response. The complete genetic variation of CYP2C19 in Vietnam still remains obscure even though data of common alleles in Vietnamese Kinh have been reported.Aim: To establish the extent of CYP2C19 polymorphism in Vietnamese.Subjects and methods: The promoter and all nine exons of CYP2C19 in 100 healthy unrelated Vietnamese Kinh subjects were sequenced. Additionally, the CYP2C19 variants, *2, *3 and *17 were analysed by RFLP-PCR in 275 subjects of four minor ethnic groups in Vietnam (Tay, Muong, H'Mong and Nung).Results: In 100 Kinh subjects, the percentages of CYP2C19*1, CYP2C19*2, CYP2C19*3 and CYP2C19*17 alleles were 76%, 20.5%, 2.5% and 1%, respectively. Three novel variants in introns 2, 5 and 8 had no impact on mRNA splicing according to the Human Splicing Finder. The prevalence of CYP2C19*17 in Vietnamese Kinh was significantly lower compared with figures found in Western Asia and Europe, while CYP2C19*2 frequency was statistically higher than that in Western Asia and several countries in Europe. The frequency of CYP2C19*2 in Kinh was significantly lower than in the other four ethnic minorities.Conclusion: These results provide information on CYP2C19 polymorphism in the Vietnamese population, which could be useful for optimising drug therapies and precision medicine studies.

Polymorphic analysis of CYP2C9 gene in Vietnamese population.

Genetic variations in CYP2C9 are associated to inter-individual variability of drugs metabolism and response. The only report has been done previously mainly focusing on the common variant alleles of CYP2C9 in Vietnamese Kinh subjects. However, little is known about the complete spectrum of this gene polymorphism in different ethnic groups of Vietnam. We sequenced the promoter region and all exons of CYP2C9 in 100 healthy unrelated Vietnamese Kinh subjects. Additionally, common CYP2C9 variants, *2 and *3, were also analyzed by RFLP-PCR in extra 194 Kinh subjects and 279 of other four ethnic groups in Vietnam. The results of these common variants observed from five ethnic groups were compared with other populations in the world. Seven previously reported alleles and two genotypes were determined in Kinh subjects. The percentage of CYP2C9*1 and CYP2C9*3 alleles are 96.5 and 3.5%, respectively. We found one novel non-synonymous variant in exon 7 leading to amino acid change at 363 position from proline to histidine. Functional analysis by SIFT and Polyphen-2 indicated that this mutation is intolerant and probably damaging. Prevalence of CYP2C9*2 observed in Vietnamese population was significantly lower compared with that of other populations in the South and West of Asia as well as in Europe. This study provides information of genetic distribution pattern of CYP2C9 in Vietnamese, which would be useful for optimizing drug therapies in Vietnam.