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DNA Genealogy Involves Two Different Methods Of Testing

Mitochondrial DNA And Y-Chromosome DNA

There are two methods by which DNA tests are conducted in order to find DNA genealogy and these are Mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA and Y-chromosome DNA tests. In the case of mtDNA, the Mitochondrial DNA is determined in the cell’s cytoplasm rather than from the nucleus as is the case with Y-chromosome DNA. What’s more, mtDNA is transmitted from a mother to her children of either sex and there is no addition or mixing on the part of the father which means that a person’s mtDNA is not any different from that of the mother’s mtDNA.

However, when using mtDNA in DNA genealogy, since it does not change rapidly, it can often lead to difficulties in determining the precise relationship that exist between individuals, though it does make it easy to find out whether there is, in fact, any relationship or not. What it boils down to is that in case there are two people sharing the same mtDNA, chances are that they must also be sharing common ancestry.

On the other hand, when using Y-chromosome tests in DNA genealogy, which is a relatively recent phenomenon, it is important to note that such method is only available to check out males since the Y-chromosome is a male unique pattern that is passed from father to his son. Thus, you can use Y-chromosome tests in DNA genealogy to determine whether two individuals that share a common surname have a shared ancestor.

The beginnings of DNA genealogy can be traced back to Bryan Sykes, who in the year 2000 published a study in which use of DNA genealogy and more particularly Y-chromosome markers was made in conjunction with studies on surnames to find out relationships. From that early study, DNA genealogy has made rapid progress and it is gaining in popularity mainly because the costs of doing the different DNA tests have fallen and there are more markers available and tests are providing clearer answers. Also, thanks to painless and simplicity of DNA collection techniques, there are many more people interested in DNA genealogy today.

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