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A correction to the exact test based on the Ewens sampling distribution

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 April 2009

Montgomery Slatkin
Affiliation:
Department of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3140, USA
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Summary

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The exact test for neutrality based on the Ewens sampling distribution described previously (Slatkin, 1994) is not correct. The problem is that the test as described is based on the probability of the ordered configuration of numbers of alleles, while it should be based on the probability of the unordered configuration. The correctly implemented exact test leads to results that are similar to those from the homozygosity test proposed by Watterson (1977) for relatively small sample sizes but can still differ substantially for larger sample sizes. Programs to perform the exact test are available from the author.

Type
Short Paper
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

References

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