Year: 2008

Y-chromosomal evidence of the cultural diffusion of agriculture in southeast Europe

Blaine Bettinger 5 Comments
Wheat farm

Image via Wikipedia

I received the following press release today from SMGF:

SALT LAKE CITY (Dec. 30, 2008)—Genetic research by the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF) and scientists from ten organizations in Europe and the U.S. shows human groups with the deepest roots in southeastern Europe were not pushed out by an incoming wave of farmer-colonists as agriculture first spread into Europe. Instead, indigenous Europeans with a hunting and gathering lifestyle adopted agriculture when it was introduced by settlers from the Middle East. The study was published in the Dec. 24, 2008 online issue of European Journal of Human Genetics.

Scientists have long debated the question of how agriculture spread into Europe from its birthplace in the Fertile Crescent region of the Middle East. But the evidence—primarily archaeological—is inconclusive. ... Click to read more!

Unlocking the Genealogical Secrets of the X Chromosome

Blaine Bettinger 20 Comments

Note: there are some great X chromosome inheritance charts below – if you are unable to see them, be sure to click through to the original post!

Edit (06/17/2014) – Brighter, cleaner charts added below!

Most genetic genealogists have sent away their cheek swabs to learn about their mitochondrial DNA or their Y-DNA lines.  Others have explored their autosomal DNA for ancestral information, a field that is growing quickly and will undergo rapid changes as the price of sequencing continues to fall.

Now genetic genealogists are beginning to discover the ancestral information locked away in the X chromosome.  Indeed, X chromosome tests have been offered by companies such as Family Tree DNA for a number of years.  Armed with some of this information as well as the advent of SNP chip information from 23andMe and deCODEme,  genetic genealogists are making new discoveries in this very young arena. ... Click to read more!

80 Percent of Americans Favor Making Genetic Testing MORE Available

Blaine Bettinger 1 Comment

iStock_000007659966XSmall The Virginia Commonwealth University Life Science Center has released the results of the VCU Life Sciences Survey and I thought I’d share some of the interesting results.

The most surprising result of the survey is that 80% of surveyed adults favor making genetic testing “easily available to all who want it,” similar to values in 2001 and 2004.  Don’t tell this to the New York and California Departments of Health!

The Benefits Outweigh the Risks

54% of adults believe that the benefits of genetic testing outweigh the risks, while 25% believe that the risks outweigh the benefits.  It’s interesting to see the education breakdown of this question.  44% of people with a high school degree or less believe that benefits outweigh risks, compared to 67% of people with a college degree or more.  And 29% of people with a high school degree or less believe that risks outweigh benefits, compared to 20% of those with a college degree or more. ... Click to read more!

Genetic Genealogy Links for December 12 2008

Blaine Bettinger 7 Comments
Positions of the different countries and terri...

Image via Wikipedia

I’m currently in the middle of third-year law school exams, so I thought I’d do a round-up of all the interesting stories I’ve seen over the past week or two.

Holiday Specials on DNA Testing

First, it appears that most of the major genetic genealogy companies are offering special deals for the holidays:

Family Tree DNA announces a holiday sale – FTDNA is offering reducing pricing for customers who are part of or join a DNA project.  For example, a 37-marker Y-DNA test is reduced to $119, down from $149.

Ancestry.com announces holiday sale – buy a DNA test between now and December 31st, and you’ll receive 40% off.  For example, a 33-marker Y-DNA test is $89.40 (usually $149) and their mtDNA test is $107.40 (usually $179). ... Click to read more!

New Genetic Genealogy Article at Ancestry Magazine

Blaine Bettinger 1 Comment

A new article in Ancestry Magazine, “Meeting My New Family,” details a recent meeting of genetic relatives in Chicago.  The author is Howard Wolinsky, who has written other articles in the field of genetic genealogy (see, for example, an article in EMBO about 2 years ago).  As Howard describes, the meeting wasn’t a traditional family reunion:

“We are a new kind of cousin. Until a few days ago, we were strangers who just happened to have had our DNA analyzed. Then we discovered we matched one another to varying degrees. Most of us have common Jewish connections. And we learned that we come from relatively rare branches of the human DNA tree. Our mothers’ mothers came from the HV branch. Our fathers’ fathers came from the G group.” ... Click to read more!

Familybuilder Announces DNA Testing

Blaine Bettinger 18 Comments

imageSimilar to a move made by myHeritage a few weeks ago, Familybuilder has announced that it will offer genetic genealogy testing to its customers.  As part of the launch of this new product, Familybuilder is offering both Y-DNA and mtDNA tests for only $59.95 until January 1.  After that, the price will be $89.95

Based on the demo account, it looks like the Y-DNA test includes 17 markers.  Although this isn’t many markers, $3.52 per marker is a great price.

Familybuilder is planning to continue to develop their genetic genealogy offering: “Currently in development is the ability to create Groups around surnames, families, and other criteria as well as the ability to Compare DNA.”  From the press release:

“Up to now, genealogical DNA testing for the masses has been cost-prohibitive,” said David Rheins, CMO of Familybuilder.  “We are excited about the launch of Familybuilder DNA, and believe that this tool will help millions of consumers better understand the origins of their heritage and ancestry. We are very focused on developing the Familybuilder DNA product line, and have plans to roll out additional tests and future functionality, including the ability to search our DNA database to identify living relatives with whom you share DNA.” ... Click to read more!

Family Tree DNA Facts & Genes Newsletter

Blaine Bettinger 1 Comment
present for myself

Image by Valerie Reneé via Flickr

Family Tree DNA has a new issue of Facts & Genes available on their website.  If you didn’t receive this newsletter but would like to receive it in the future, you can register here.

I especially like the “Case Study in Genetic Genealogy”, which is reprinted in full below.  I, like others, sometimes jump too quickly to the conclusion that there has been a non-paternal event in a line.

Case Study in Genetic Genealogy

When I [“I” being a hypothetic someone who has tested through a genetic genealogy company] first tested, I had no matches with my surname, and a match with another surname. I was told that there was an event in the past, breaking the link of the Y chromosome and the surname – an illegitimacy. ... Click to read more!

Family Tree DNA and MyHeritage Partner to Combine DNA With Family Trees

Blaine Bettinger 2 Comments
image

As the Guardian reported today in “Genealogy website MyHeritage offers low-cost DNA tests“, Family Tree DNA and MyHeritage have formed a partnership to combine DNA testing with online family trees.  From the press release:

“With close to 220,000 records, FamilyTreeDNA is the largest database of genealogic DNA information in the world. This provides the perfect complement to MyHeritage’s current research tools, giving our members another way to learn about where they come from,” said Gilad Japhet, founder and CEO of MyHeritage. “We help people around the world discover, connect and communicate with their extended family network and easily research their family history. Now, by working with FamilyTreeDNA, we can offer a solution when the paper trail runs out.” ... Click to read more!

Security at Navigenics and 23andMe

Blaine Bettinger 9 Comments

Security of genetic information is an enormous concern for individuals, and thus an enormous concern facing commercial genetic enterprises.  I was recently having a conversation with someone about the security of genetic and personal information at companies such as 23andMe and Navigenics, and I pointed out that the very livelihood of these organizations depends on their ability to secure information.  A single security breach could potentially drive away future customers.

On that topic, Ryan Calo, a residential fellow at Stanford Law School’s Center for Internet & Society writes about a panel discussion held at the law school (pdf poster here):

“With a credit card and a saliva sample, consumers can now unlock the secrets carried in their DNA. Consumer genomics offers direct access to one’s genetic code, plus interpretations of health risks, family lineage, opportunities for social networking, and more. But how should consumer genomics be regulated? Join us for a panel discussion with leaders at the forefront of consumer genomics (23andme and Navigenics), media commentators (Alexis Madrigal from Wired), and policy makers.” ... Click to read more!

The ASHG Ancestry Testing Task Force

Blaine Bettinger 2 Comments

Charmaine Royal, Ph.D., discusses “The pitfalls of tracing your ancestry” at NatureNews.  Dr. Royal, an associate professor at the Duke Institute for Genome Sciences and Policy, co-chairs the ASHG Ancestry Testing Task Force.

Brendan Maher of Nature’s In the Field blog has more at “ASHG 2008: A stance, more or less, on genetic ancestry testing.”  Not much more covered here that was already written at The Spittoon – see “ASHG Releases Ancestry Testing Statement Emphasizing Interpretation.”

If you’re interested in seeing the Task Force’s webcast, it’s available here.