DNA Testing (New Thread)

The member who gave all the info on DNA testing has deleted all their messages, so there is no longer any specific info on the DNA testing (how to pick a reputable service, how the tests work, etc).

I came back to the post today because I'm ready to pursue testing, but *poof* no info! :-(

Anyone willing to post some useful info?

https://www3.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/

I used the national geonographic site to do my dna testing. It tells you through the mother where in the world you originate from. It is completely confidential. You don't give them your name. They assign you a number and that number is the only way you can assess your DNA information. There is a lot of information on the site.
Enjoy

Belle

There is a lot of info on The Genetic Genealogist blog (http://www.thegeneticgenealogist.com/). I've heard that the author of this blog is quite helpful (no personal experience). I have no personal experience with DNA testing either, so I can't recommend anything myself.

I've participated in several DNA projects - each providing interesting results. There are a couple more tests I plan on doing in the near future. I think the Genographic Project (#2 above) is a great place to start. The results are presented in a very interesting way and the testing is done through Family Tree DNA (http://www.familytreedna.com/) where these results can be built upon with more detailed testing. I've found that these tests are offered at fairly reasonable prices. When you participate in a group project, it also tends to lower the price a bit (volume pricing). The one caveat - it can generate spam in that the baseline result matching (12 markers for Y DNA, I'm not sure what it is on mtDNA) is pretty useless. From a Y perspective, 25 markers or more and you're on the right track and I'm really not sure what should be for mtDNA. Hope this helps a little...

thanks!

duaneb...I have no idea what you're talking about :-) That was my problem the last time around (in the previous thread)so the poster explained what all that "stuff" (like "markers", "mtDNA") meant and how it would link me up to someone else or reveal my racial background. Had no idea he/she would come back and delete all their messages...I should have done a copy/paste into my notes!

There's an article in July / August 2007 Atlantic that might be of interest, Who's Your Daddy? The Unintended Consequences of Genetic Screening for Disease, in which Steve Olson writes Many efforts to trace male ancestry using DNA terminate at what geneticists delicately call a "non-paternity event". ... According to Bennett Greenspn, whose company, Family Tree DNA, sponsors projects that attempt to link different families to common ancestors, "Any project that has more than 20 or 30 people in it is likely to have an oops in it." ... When geneticists do large-scale studies of populations, they sometimes can't help but learn about the paternity of the research subjects. They rarely publish their findings, but the numbers are common knowledge within the genetics community. In graduate school, genetics students are typically are taught that 5 to 15 percent of the men on birth certificates are not the biological fathers of their children."

Apparently, non-paternity rates range from a low of

(Edit: post contd. For some reason, second half of post kept being dropped.)

(Edit 2: Still being dropped. (What duh?))

Apparently, non-paternity rates range from a low of

pdxwoman,
basically in the simplest of terms, it's this: men can participate in the Y-chromosome DNA tests as well as the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), whereas women are pretty much eligible for mtDNA only - unless they have a male paternal relative that can be tested. I'm no expert (nor do I play one on TV), but from experience, as stated earlier, the Genographic Project is a great way to get you feet wet and begin your understanding of what genetics is all about. It's a painless process and National Geographic does a very good job of explaining the results you receive. Other than that, if you really want to understand the science behind it, there is a lot of great information available on the web as well as many discussion groups you could participate in. Here are a few:
http://www.dnai.org/
http://www.genome.gov/
http://www.familytreedna.com/forum/
http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/other/DNA/GENEALOGY-DNA.html

http://www.familytreedna.com/glossary.html

this site will take you to a glossary of terms.

thanks everyone!

I'm sure some reading in this group have participated in the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF) free tests. But you never got to see your actual results.

Did you know that for a small (US $19.50) processing fee you can unlock a maternal line test result?

I got my results the other day, I'm in Haplogroup K . I've always been curious but not enough to pay big dollars for testing.