Inferring the Dynamics of Effective Population Size Using Autosomal Genomes

Next-generation sequencing technology has provided a great opportunity for inferring human demographic history by investigating changes in the effective population size (N(e)). In this report, we introduce a strategy for estimating N(e) dynamics, allowing the exploration of large multi-locus SNP datasets. We applied this strategy to the Phase 1 Han Chinese samples from the 1000 Genomes Project. The Han Chinese population has undergone a continuous expansion since 25,000 years ago, at first slowly from about 7,300 to 9,800 (at the end of the last glacial maximum about 15,000 YBP), then more quickly to about 46,000 (at the beginning of the Neolithic about 8,000 YBP), and then even more quickly to reach a population size of about 140,000 (recently).