Eastman's Online Genealogy Newsletter

DNA Links 17 Living People to Man Found in Glacier

Here's a fascinating family tree! Scientists have found a direct link between the frozen remains of a man found in a glacier in northern British Columbia, Canada and 17 people living in British Columbia, Yukon and Alaska. The news came at a symposium in Victoria this past weekend, focusiang on Kwaday Dan Ts'inchi', an aboriginal man whose remains were found in 1999 by hunters in Tatshenshini-Alsek Park, which is in the traditional territory of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations.

Kwaday Dan Ts'inchi' means Long Ago Person Found, and he's believed to have died some time between the years 1670 and 1850. His remains were revealed after a glacier started to recede.

Since the discovery, scientists have been studying all facets of the man, including his clothes, tools, migratory patterns, even the contents of his stomach. But it's the DNA link to living people that has created the biggest stir.

Computer Program Reveals Anyone's Ancestry

Imagine being adopted, with no understanding of your cultural or genetic background. You don’t know your heritage or what diseases you are genetically predisposed to. Most of us have some idea about the roots of our family tree, but little understanding of what those lower branches mean in terms of our predisposition to a host of diseases and ailments.

Now, a group of computer scientists, mathematicians, and biologists from around the world have developed a computer algorithm that can quickly trace an individual’s genetic ancestry with only a small sample of their DNA. In fact, the program can trace the genetic ancestry of thousands of individuals in minutes, without any prior knowledge of their background.

Crusaders Left a Genetic Legacy

Our ancestors traveled widely. Scientists have detected the faint genetic traces left by medieval crusaders in the Middle East. The team says they found a particular DNA signature, which recently appeared in Lebanon and is probably linked to the crusades.

GeneTree and Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation to Collaborate

The following announcement was written by Genetree and by the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (two different divisions of the Sorenson companies):

Participants in the Foundation’s DNA Database, the World’s Most Diverse Collection of Correlated Genetic and Genealogical Information, Can Receive the Mitochondrial DNA Profiles from Their Submitted DNA Samples for an Introductory Price of $19.50 Through GeneTree

SALT LAKE CITY -- GeneTree, a DNA-enabled family history-sharing Web site designed to help people understand where their personal histories belong within the greater human genetic story, and the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF), a non-profit scientific organization currently expanding the world’s most diverse collection of genetic genealogy information, today announced a special offer that enables participants who have contributed DNA samples and genealogical pedigree charts to the SMGF Database project to receive deeply discounted DNA profiles in order to take advantage of the resources available on the GeneTree family history social networking site.

Could Jefferson Hair Sample Provide New DNA Information?

A newsletter reader wrote this week with an interesting question and supposition. I answered in e-mail but will share my answer here for newsletter readers who might be interested.

Many people are aware of the rumors about Thomas Jefferson that have persisted for more than 200 years. The claim is that Thomas Jefferson was the father of one or possibly more children by his slave, Sally Hemings.

Google Wife Targets World Genealogy DNA Domination

Anne Wojcicki is the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, one of the world's richest men. She is also co-founder of a biotech company called 23andme. She was recently quoted as saying, "If genealogy continues at its current rate, what we're offering will soon become a standard part of people's lives."

Wojcicki and her business partner Linda Avey reckon their service represents the future of social networking. In the same way that MySpace, Facebook, You Tube and Flickr allow users to share information - in the shape of videos, photos or instant messaging - Wojcicki and Avey can see a time where people worldwide will share and compare their genetic details.

Did I Marry My Cousin?

Do you know all your cousins? How about all your second cousins? The third cousins? The fourth cousins? Most people not know their extended relatives out to fourth or fifth cousins. These relatives may or may not have the same last name as yours, depending upon whether or not the cousin is on your paternal or maternal side.

When you pick a mate, how do you know that the two of you are not related? If you do not know all of your extended cousins, how do you know that you are not marrying "within the family?"

Colon Cancer Risk Traced to Common Ancestor in 1630s

Blame it on your ancestors! Writing for the Reuters news service, Michael Kahn writes about a married couple who sailed to America from England around 1630. This one couple is now believed to be the reason why thousands of people in the United States are at higher risk of a hereditary form of colon cancer.

Using a genetic fingerprint, a U.S. team traced back a so-called founder genetic mutation to the couple found among two large families currently living in Utah and New York.

Cancer researchers at the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Utah did not name the families but said thousands of people across the country may have the mutation that spread widely as the couple's descendants branched apart over many generations.

Check Your DNA at BestBuy Stores in Canada

I must admit that I was a bit surprised to see an ad for a "DNA Maternal Ancestry Package" at BestBuy stores in Canada. Imagine the concept: stop by the store, pick up a laptop computer, a new dishwasher, and maybe a couple of CDs, and find your ancestry. All this can be done in one quick visit. Well, almost.

In fact, BestBuy of Canada is selling DNA Maternal Ancestry Packages produced by the DNA Ancestry Project of Vancouver, British Columbia. With the maternal ancestry package, a male or female individual can trace their maternal roots (only) and discover their maternal origins.

Announcing AfricanDNA.com

The following announcement was written by AfricanDNA.com:

Innovative Partnership Offers African Americans Unprecedented Choices in Search for Roots

BOSTON -- AfricanDNA.com, the first company dedicated to offering both genetic testing and genealogical tracing services for African Americans, is being launched this month by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor and Director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research at Harvard University, in partnership with the Inkwell Foundation and Family Tree DNA, the world’s leader in genetic genealogy. The precedent-setting site is the only company in the field of genetic genealogy that will provide African Americans with family tree research in addition to DNA testing.