www.paternitytests.info
Posted on | September 24, 2009 | No Comments
DNA Paternity Testing is now the most widely used tool for confirming direct biological relationships. This blog has been set-up to provide in-depth information on the various aspects of the paternity test. If you are planning to order a paternity test or want to know about paternity testing, we recommend that you search through the various DNA paternity testing articles available. Feel free to leave us your comments or feedback!
Unreliable DNA Evidence in Knox-sollecito trial
Posted on | December 13, 2009 | No Comments
The Meredith Kercher trial comes to an end as the sentences are finally read for the accused- Amdna Knox and her Italian lover Raffaele Sollecito in the city of Perugia, Northern Italy. However, the defense still questions the reliability of the DNA forensic evidence brought forward by the prosecution and Knox is supported by many who feel she has been unfairly convicted and butchered by the media.
Amanda Knox, sentenced to 26 years in prison, still declares herself Kercher’s friend, claiming that she would have never hurt her. Raffaele Sollecito, Knox’s boyfriend, was sentenced to 27 years. The two have already spent two years behind bars whilst awaiting their final verdict.
The Italian judiciary system has gone under virulent criticism by factions which support Knox’s innocence and mock the flaws of Italian law. Knox’s family have voiced serious doubts about the way the system operates in Italy and champion Amanda’s innocence. Whatever the case, there will unlikely be any diplomatic clashes over the Kercher case between the US and Italy. Knox and Sollecito will have another appeal without jury followed by a final appeal should they lose the second.
Amanda Knox as Devil
The image created by the media of the American student, Amanda Knox, is of one who was often high on drugs, had divergent sexual habit and was a party girl. She has been portrayed as being the instigator of the sex game in which Kercher unwillingly participated. The Italian media have used dehumanizing terms and have undertook a character defamation and Knox using terms which in America might well have been banned from use in the media under such circumstances.
The Flawed DNA Forensic Investigation
A view still upheld by the defense is that the gathering of DNA samples from the crime scene was flawed. This is an issue that has over-spilled into much of the US where sentiment has built up for Knox and her conviction has caused much outrage. The Italian judiciary system has come under attack by many Americans but many also feel that this is the time for Italy to take proper hold of justice and show that it can punish serious crimes with due punishment.
The evidence was pinned onto the questionable murder weapon which was found in Sollecito’s apartment. The knife had Knox’s DNA on the handle and a very small amount of Kercher’s DNA on the blade. However, the defense notes how the knife was unlikely to have been the one that caused the death of Kercher as the wounds in her neck did not match the size of the blade on the supposed murder weapon.
Furthermore, the defense notes how the traces of blood found on the knife proved to yield too little genetic material to produce conclusive DNA results. In fact, they even claim that the forensic DNA evidence was destroyed whilst being analyzed by the forensic DNA experts.
All innocent?
Rudy Hermann Guede was accused by Knox and Sollecito’s lawyers of acting alone in the murder of Kercher. However, he too claims to be innocent and is appealing the case. Sollecito claimed to have received a call in his flat at 11:00pm but this call was never traced. Knox at first claimed to have been in the flat with Kercher and have witnessed Kercher scream as she was being killed; later she claimed she was not actually in the house with Kercher the night she was murdered and only said she was because she was placed under pressure by the police forces of Perugia.
The case will still cause outrage as campaigns have been launched in Knox’s home town of Washington; people will forever sustain the unreliability of the forensic DNA evidence gathered and put forward as court evidence and criticize the judiciary inconsistencies, if any, of the Italian law.
Tags: DNA contamination > DNA evidence > dna testing > dna testing laboratory > forensic DNA test
Genealogy and Ancestry Testing
Posted on | November 25, 2009 | No Comments
Advances in DNA testing have made it possible to accurately carry out DNA ancestry tests to track our ancestral origins. In the past, mapping ancestry relied on searches in archives, birth certificates, death certificates and the likes. Whilst this is still used, internet searches have made things all the easier as such investigation can span a global scale. But ultimately, genetic testing is the most reliable means of determining whether individuals are truly genetically related.
Ancestry Testing for the Romanovs – the last of the Russian Imperial Family
The story of the last Romanovs is a chilling account of the massacre of a whole family and the end of Russian Imperialism. A bit of genealogy is mandatory at this point. Empress Alexandra was Queen Victoria’s granddaughter. She was consort princess to Tsar Nicholas II and the last tsaritsa Russia would see. During the First World War there was a build-up of resentment because the Romanovs had German consorts and a lot of this resentment was channeled in the form of hatred towards Empress Alexandra.
Tsar Nicholas and his family were all shot in July 1918; Nicholas, his wife Alexandra, his four daughters and their son. It was not until 1991 that nine skeletons were found and suspected to be those of the Romanov family. The remains could only be identified correctly using DNA testing techniques which confirmed that the remains in fact where somewhere connected to the Imperial family.
Mitochondrial DNA Testing for the Female Remains
MtDNA testing (mitochondrial DNA testing) was used to identify that the putative tsarina in the grave was the mother of the three other female skeletons found there buried. The DNA forensic testing was complex, before prior to the MtDNA test, all skeletons found in the grave had to undergo the amelogenin gene test to help understand which remains belonged to males and which to females.
MtDNA or mitochondrial DNA is passed only down the female line down the maternal line, from mother to daughter. To further corroborate and confirm findings, scientists involved in the case had to find a living descendent to the Russian imperial family, or better a direct descendent of Empress Alexandra. For this, the investigators turned to the British Royal family. Queen Victoria was Empress Alexandra’s maternal grandmother. Queen Victoria’s DNA type was traced down the family line until her present descendants, namely Prince Philip. By collecting DNA samples from living descendants, genetic profiles could be drawn up and compared to the DNA profiles of the remains found in the grave. STR testing was then used to determine if the remains in the grave were all somehow related to each other. This type of test is very important in forensic DNA testing to locate repeated sequences of DNA which can then be located on the profiles of other relatives.
Ancestry Testing- what is it?
An ancestry test might not require the same depth of research as it did to confirm the remains of the Romanovs. DNA testing companies offer an ancestry test with a wider scope taking populations and native areas into consideration. In-depth research to map whole family trees back generations would prove immensely costly and take months if not years of research. Many DNA testing companies now offer ancestry testing which can be done at home using a simple mouth swab. The scope of this test is far more general. The test will tell you a lot about your ancestral origins, linking you to different anthropological regions and populations and plotting them onto a high resolution map to show your unique geogenetic links. The test will work at locating regional affiliations with the anthropological regions in its database.
DNA testing companies will have access to a DNA database in which are stored the genetic information of thousands of people. The DNA profile of the person who wishes to have their DNA tested for ancestry is compared to those in the database to track their ancestral origins.
What the Test does not do
The results can be fascinating to say the least. You can be ethnically and anthropologically linked to your ancestors and will likely be surprised at who they where and where they came from. However, whilst DNA ancestry testing can establish that you are related to an ethnics group or population, it cannot tell you what exactly the relationship is. Moreover, this type of testing will not establish direct relationships unless the other person undergoes a DNA test. And finally, it will not provide you with your family tree since the exact relationships between individual cannot be determined through this type of test. However, considering the ease and cost friendliness of ancestry testing as opposed to extremely expensive in-depth genealogical research, DNA ancestry testing is indeed an interesting and informative test for anyone wishing to locate ancestral origins.
The Myths Of Paternity Testing
Posted on | October 30, 2009 | No Comments
Today paternity DNA testing has become that most reliable and accurate means of determining biological relationships between an alleged father and a child. Given its widespread use it is normal that there should be a number of myths surrounding this type of testing. Hereunder, I shall try and clarify a few of the most common ones.
I need to have blood taken and this is painful
The days of blood DNA tests are somewhat over and are though still sometimes used, it is rather rare. However, since we are talking about blood, one has to clarify that the process is not painful in itself, but it is invasive, it involves a needle penetrating the skin, bruising which can look unsightly and psychological mini-traumas especially in children. Advances in DNA technology means that today there is the harmless and painless buccal swab. A cotton bud like utensil that is rubbed on the inner cheeks and send to be analyzed in the correct laboratories. Paternity DNA tests cannot be easier with the use of oral swabs and are equally accurate as a blood DNA test.
It is not possible to do DNA testing on an unborn child
Though this is possible it is a rather thorny issue. The procedure is invasive and involves taking cell samples from inside the mother’s womb. Cells are normally gather form either the placenta, the organ which gives the child food and oxygen, or from loose fetal cells. Any samples gathered have to be analyzed very quickly as samples cannot be kept for long. The procedure has a small risk factor- the child can be harmed. Though the risk is small, it is there. Some DNA testing companies have offered this service in the past but chose to do away with it for the above reasons and moreover, for reasons of ethicality. Parents might choose to abort the child should the results not favor their expectations. One should be heavily critical of companies offering pre-natal DNA testing using techniques which are non-invasive as these are not scientifically or medically grounded.
What about confidentiality?
These tests are as confidential as you want them to be. When you buy a home DNA kit you are responsible for taking the samples and returning them to be processed in laboratories. When results are returned determined paternity, they are returned specifically to the address the buyer stipulated. After that, what the buyer of the kit does with the results is up to them. Companies providing DNA testing services guarantee total confidentiality as they understand how delicate and stressful a matter this can be. However, when doing a legal paternity test, one must bear in mind that these will have to appear in court and handed through perhaps, various legal entities. The issue of confidentiality is diminished in such cases.
The lengthy wait for results must be nerve-wrecking
Once the samples of the swabs with the DNA are sent back, it is only a matter of days till they are returned with the results. Of course, there are issues of postage involved but usually the differences here are negligible. Once the swabs are returned with the DNA samples, the results can be expected within 5 to 7 days. Receiving the kit in the first place is another issue. The time here depends on the efficiency of postal services which vary from country to country, whether one opts for courier mail, any strikes there might be.
If there is not father then there can be no paternity DNA test
In the case of an absent, deceased or unwilling father, other members of the alleged father’s family can be tested using what is known as avuncular DNA testing, a substitute test for the standard DNA paternity test. The genetic profiles of the aunt, uncle or grandparent can be used and compared with that of the alleged father’s child. If both the father’s parents are tested, it is possible to re-create the alleged father’s genetic profile and this taken for comparison with the child’s DNA.
Tags: dna paternity > dna paternity test > dna testing > legal paternity test > paternity test kit
DNA testing for twins
Posted on | October 14, 2009 | No Comments
Establishing twins as being either identical or fraternal can accurately be done by means of a Twins DNA test. Whist reliance on facial similarity to make the distinction between the two types of twins is common; this is often misleading and medically discouraged. Identifying the DNA profile of the twins and consequently, comparing genetic blue prints through DNA testing is the principle method advocated by those in the medical field.
What does the DNA Zygosity Twin test tell us?
The zygosity test basically tells us whether the twins in question are monozygotic (identical twins) or dizygotic (fraternal twins). Zygosity is a generic term which encompasses both types of twins and essentially simply refers to the degree of similarity between the twin genomes. Whilst DNA profiles in dizygotic twins (Fraternal twins) can approximate each other, the match between the two twin profiles can however, never be identical. Thus, it is only monozygotic twins (identical twins) that will have identical DNA profiles.
Identical or fraternal – how are they made?
The scientific terms themselves-monozygotic and dizygotic- explain the nature of fertilisation in the two types of twins as it happens at conception. Monozygotic twins are born when one sperm cell (hence, the prefix mono), fertilises one egg and the egg then splits to form two independent embryos. On the other hand, dizygotic twins are formed when two sperm cells (Hence the prefix di) fertilize two separate eggs and both are simultaneously implanted in the uterine wall.
Why perform a Twin DNA Zygosity Test?
The Twin Zygosity DNA test is often done simply out of curiosity as either parents of twins, or twins themselves may have their interest piqued and wish to find out if they are identical or not . However, more importantly, in the case of the need for organ transplants, identical twins offer the highest success rate, reducing dramatically the chance of the organ being rejected. This is due to the identical genetic make up and tissues type of identical twins. The same applies to blood transfusion- identical twins have the same blood group, and thus, should the need arise, one becomes the life line of the other.
Twin Zygosity DNA test and Paternity DNA test
When a paternity test is requested to verify paternal lineage, it is customary to ask for both twins to be sent for testing. This is due to the possibility of the mother having slept with two men within a short time frame and thus, the chance of two separate ova (female eggs) being fertilised by two sperm cells, each sperm from a different man. Under such circumstances, the children will have different fathers; hence, it is important to determine whether the twins are identical or fraternal.
Moreover, paternity DNA tests might prove inconclusive if the alleged fathers are identical twins as their DNA profiles will be identical replicas of each others’. The child’s father in this case cannot be found through a DNA paternity test.
The Missouri identical twin fathers case
Identical twin brothers became father and uncle to a girl- but exactly which twin has what relationship to the girl? Each twin had been simultaneously having an affair with the mother of the girl and both slept with her on the same day. Identical twin father means that DNA paternity tests were of little use to solve the father or uncle dilemma- both would have equal probability of being the father. The mother’s testimony was the only evidence that the court could rely on. The story clearly shows up the limitation of current DNA testing.
Tags: dizygotic > dna paternity test > dna testing > DNA zygosity DNA test > monozygotic > paternity DNA tests > paternity test > twin test > Twin zygosity DNA test > twins dna testing > zygosity test