Chromosome and mtDNA - Linking Lives, Past and Present

Deoxyribonucleic Acid, most commonly known as DNA, has been cropping up again and again in the development of Biomedical Technology. DNAs, the blueprint of humans, are unique and inherent in each individual, even among identical twins. In a word, DNAs are like human fingerprints that identify each person, his roots and ancestry and his ethnicity among others.

One of the major uses of DNA testing is the surname test or the Most Recent Common Ancestor data. Through DNA testing, people can now determine if people of the same surnames are relatives. How is this done?

The male human DNA contains the Y Chromosome. This can tell us whether two or more males of the same family name or surname are relatives or not. And that if they are, DNA testing of the Y chromosome can also identify the MRCA or the Most Recent Common Ancestor linking the two males.

Aside from being able to determine the ethnicity of an individual, his relation to another of the same surname and their Most Recent Common Ancestor, the Y chromosome markers in male human genome can also provide information on the individual?s haplogroup. A haplogroup or a haplotype is a unique grouping of individuals with the same genetic characteristics, giving an individual the information for his deep ancestral lineage, whether paternal or maternal.

However, since only males have Y chromosomes, females can determine the same information with an entirely different DNA test, the mtDNA test. Since mtDNA or Mitochondrial DNA is passed by the mother to both male and female offspring, women don?t need to worry about not knowing their roots, their ethnicity and their relation to individuals with the same surname. Just as the males have their Y chromosomes, women have their mtDNA tests to get the same information as well.

Truly, Biomedical technology has gone a long way in linking lives, both past and present.

JB Anthony is the co-webmaster and co-promoter of http://www.dnapaternityguide.com. To get DNA test kits online, inquire about DNA testing, access links to DNA Test Labs, read updates and news of recent DNA Paternity test developments, please visit http://www.dnapaternityguide.com