Atramentova L.A.

Department of Genetics and Cytology, Kharkov National University, 4, Svobody pl., Kharkov, 66077, Ukraine

Any political and social-economical changes in human society reflect on the population structure governing the prevalence of the pathologies inherited by the population, its stability and ability to work.

Change of political-economical situation in 1999 had a profound impact on demographic processes all over the post-Soviet area: new population barriers appeared and the rate and directionality of the migratory movement as well as the social structure of the population migrated changed too.

Formation of the independent state, Ukraine, in 1999 coincided with an occurrence of the ‘negative’ demographic processes. Over a period from 1991 to 1999, the number of marriages decreased from 9.5 to 6.0, the birth rate dropped down to 9.1 as against 12.1 and mortality increased from 12.5 to 15.2 per 1000 population including infant mortality - 14.3 as compared with 13.9 per 1000 new-born children and all these processes led to a depopulation. Just in 1991. the ‘negative’ increase in population (0.8%) was recorded for the first time within the post-war period.

Study carried out by a group of scientists from Kharkov National University has shown that genetic-demographic processes occurring in the present-day population of East Ukraine (Kharkov, Donetsk, Poltava region) took different path as compared with the period when Ukraine was incorporated in the Soviet Union.

Some processes have not changed: the migration factor decreases further, in the formation of the conjugal unions importance of such natural factors as nationality and birth place falls off

but social features, education and profession acquire greater importance.

Genetic-demographic processes typical for East Ukraine population

The foregoing led the authors to suggest that nowadays some processes are evident among the Ukrainian populations which are directed towards a reconstruction of their state typical for the population before the industrialization period. In genetic respect, they become more uniform and isolated, outbreeding component grows more slowly, in agricultural areas the growth of the inbreeding component is noted. All these factors together with a depopulation show that the genetic process is ‘negative’ as the populations lose partly their genetic diversity that is favourable for the increasing of the frequency of pathologies inherited.