Presented by Alice M. Fairhurst
Overview: Personal testing of three different types of DNA will be explained and which companies test them. Resources to help the tester understand DNA will be shown.
Issues for Chinese Testers
- Testers will get Haplogroups and migration charts if testing mtDNA or Y-DNA and can compare results with Dr. Yan’s charts.
- Autosomal DNA has no haplogroups but does give bio-geographical information so can be informative for a person with mixed ancestry.
Kinds of DNA useful for Genealogy: mtDNA which follows the straight female line, Y-DNA which follows the straight male line, and autosomal DNA which follows all ancestor lines back to 5 generations (and sometimes beyond).
mtDNA follows the straight female line back in time. mtDNA is in the egg. All people are created from an egg so both males and females have mtDNA but only females pass it forward to their children. There are multiple copies of mtDNA in each cell of the body and they are the "energy pack" of the cells. Since there are so many copies of mtDNA in the body, they are the easiest to identify in ancient remains. The only company testing mtDNA, showing haplogroups and their migration paths and giving matches is Family Tree DNA.
To see a video about mtDNA inheritance, go to: http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/chromosomes/typesmito
To see the Chinese geographical charts of mtDNA (Dr. Yan Shi of Fudan University) in Chinese, but charts are viewable, go to: : http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_465ddf790102v2w2.html
Y-DNA is the test for males only. Y-DNA follows the straight male line back in time. Y-DNA comes from the sperm and is what makes a child a male. No females have sperm so the genealogy traces directly
back in time from male to male. There is one copy of Y-DNA in the nucleus of each cell in the body. This test is particularly useful for a male who is a direct male line descendant of a "paper" son. The only company testing Y-DNA, showing haplogroups and their migration paths and giving matches is Family Tree DNA.
To see a video about Y-DNA inheritance, go to:
To see the Chinese geographical charts of Y-DNA (Dr. Yan Shi of Fudan University) in Chinese, but charts are viewable, go to: http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_465ddf790102v2w2.html
Autosomal DNA (at Family Tree DNA this test is called Family Finder). Autosomal DNA comes from 22 chromosomes in the nucleus of each cell in the body. Each child gets half their autosomal DNA from their father and half from their mother. One would suppose that each child would get one-fourth from each grandparent, one-eighth from each great grandparents, one-sixteenth from each great-great- grandparent, but as one goes farther back in time a strict mathematical division is not the reality. A child is likely to have some DNA from every great-great-grandparents, but prior to that some lines may no longer be contributing DNA to that child. Two sisters of a family will get a different mix of inheritance from their ancestors as will two brothers as each child is unique. Only identical twins get the same mix. Autosomal DNA has no migration maps or haplogroups as it consists of many lines, not a single line. Autosomal DNA is useful in identifying cousins up to 3rd cousins (common great-great-grandparents) and will sometimes show cousin relations prior to that.
Multiple companies test autosomal DNA. Three look for matches from the last 5 generations and show matches: 23andMe, Ancestry, Family Tree DNA. One looks for deeper ancestry and does not show matches: National Geographic’s Genographic. Autosomal DNA does show traces of where all lines came from and this is represented in biogeographical maps, but maps from different companies will not be identical due to using a differing set of reference populations.
To see a video about autosomal inheritance, go to:
Chinese Genealogy Books Follow Male Lines (Y-DNA)
- Mao Tse Dung destroyed much of Chinese genealogy records in the North of China, but most Chinese immigrants to the USA are from the South of China.
- Many Chinese family associations collected genealogies and printed them in the early 1900’s.
- FamilySearch has many images of Chinese genealogy books.http://tinyurl.com/FamSearchChinese
Recommended Websites for Beginners:
- Beginners Guide to Genetic Genealogy by Kelly Wheaton https://sites.google.com/site/wheatonsurname/beginners-guide-to-genetic-genealogy
- The Genetic Genealogist by Blaine Bettinger, http://www.thegeneticgenealogist.com
- ISOGG Wiki - http://www.isogg.org/wiki/Wiki_Welcome_Page
- ISOGG Y-Tree – http://www.isogg.org/tree
- Kitty Cooperʼs Blog http://blog.kittycooper.com
- Your Genetic Genealogist by CeCe Moore http://www.yourgeneticgenealogist.com
- DNA Testing Adviser by Richard Hill http://www.dna-testing-adviser.com
Recommended Books for Beginners:
- Genetic Genealogy: The Basics and Beyond, by Emily D. Aulicino
- Forensic Genealogy – Revised, by Colleen Fitzpatrick & Andrew Yeiser
- NextGen Genealogy: The DNA Connection, by David R. Dowell
- Trace Your Roots with DNA, by Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak and Ann Turner
- Deep Ancestry: Inside the Genographic Project, by Spencer Wells
Genetic Genealogy (DNA) 2016: Thursday, June 2, 2015
47th Annual Southern California Genealogy Jamboree, Friday-Sunday, June 3-5, 2016
11 optional Workshops with 3 on DNA topics.
Location: Los Angeles Marriott Burbank Airport Hotel
Register at http://scgsgenealogy.com Click on Jamboree.