AUS-QLD-SE-Germans-L Archives

From: "Beverly" <>
Subject: Fw: Genes and Genealogy
Date: Wed, 5 Apr 2000 16:56:26 -0000

Listers, saw this on the Pommern net. If we really really wanted to prove
parentage and connection to a certain family, it seems that if we had the
time and $$$ we could certainly prove our ancestry and our parentage.
Almost smacks of the "Big Brother is Watching You" syndrome of the book
1984. At least it would settle inheritance questions etc.
Best wishes to you all while I am away.
cheers, Beverly.
From: <>
To: "Beth Burgess" <>;
<>
Sent: Wednesday, April 05, 2000 11:19 PM
Subject: Genes and Genealogy


> Your surname may well be written in your genes, a study has shown.
> This surprising discovery suggests that forensic evidence left at the
scene
> of a crime could be read in a DNA laboratory and reveal the criminal's
name.
>
> Professor Bryan Sykes, at the University of Oxford, started the research
as
> "a bit of fun", but it is likely to have an impact in both forensic
science
> and genealogy.
>
> Professor Sykes used samples from 61 volunteers who shared his surname to
> establish a link between the name and the distinctive DNA. He has found
> similar results for three other names, but thinks the link may not hold
for
> the most common surnames like Jones and Smith.
>
> Fathering a dynasty
>
> The research makes the first direct link between genes and genealogy,
> showing that successive generations of a family can inherit unique
sections
> of DNA.
>
> This strongly implies that people sharing a surname share a single male
> ancestor. Genealogists had long assumed that there would be several
> founders for every family name.
>
> "It puts every family on a par with the aristocracy, in being able to
trace
> ourselves back to an original founder," said Professor Sykes.
>
> The name Sykes means a boundary stream and is a common landscape feature
in
> Yorkshire, suggesting a number of people could have adopted it in the 13th
> and 14th centuries, when inherited surnames became common.
>
> History of infidelity
>
> It has been traditional in England for children to take their father's
name
> and so Professor Sykes and colleague Catherine Irven looked at the Y
> chromosome, which fathers pass to sons but not daughters.
>
> They randomly chose 250 men with the name Sykes and asked for DNA samples:
> 61 replied with a swab from the inside of their cheek.
>
> Half of the group shared four unique sections of DNA which were not found
> in control subjects either in Yorkshire or other areas of the UK.
>
> The other half did not have the Sykes DNA, suggesting some infidelity in
> the Sykes dynasty. However, the estimated rate of infidelity over the 700
> years the name has existed for is very low.
>
> If just 1.3% of the Sykes children in each generation were fathered by
> someone other than a Sykes, then the accumulation of "foreign" genes would
> mean that about half of today's Sykes would not have the unique DNA.
>
> This uncertainty means the DNA evidence of a name could not be used to
> convict criminals, but it could help to narrow down searches. It is also
> likely that families with the most common names, like Smith and Jones, do
> have multiple founders.
>
> The research is published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.
>
> Search BBC News Online
>
>
>
> Advanced search options
> BBC ONE TV NEWS
>
> WORLD NEWS SUMMARY
>
> See also:
>
>
> 30 Mar 00 | Sci/Tech
> June target for human genome
> 14 Mar 00 | Sci/Tech
> Call to publish all gene data praised
> 25 Mar 00 | Sci/Tech
> Crime-fighting's hi-tech future
> 28 Mar 00 | Sci/Tech
> 'Single mutation led to language'
> 27 Jan 00 | Sci/Tech
> Researchers build huge DNA chains
> Internet links:
>
>
> Cellular Genetics, Oxford University
> American Journal of Human Genetics
>
> The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites
>
>
> Links to other Sci/Tech stories are at the foot of the page.
>
>

This thread:

• Fw: Genes and Genealogy by "Beverly" <>