Ancestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA Day


Celebrated annually on April 25, National DNA Day commemorates both the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA in 1953 and the completion of the Human Genome Project in April 2003.   These scientific strides made all sorts of new genetic applications available, including the genetic genealogy DNA test we use to help you grow your family tree. 

Organizations such as the American Society of Human Genetics (ASHG), the Genetics Society of America (GSA), and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) each have special events or activities designed to excite, spread awareness, and garner further education about the underlying principles of human genetics. (There are even Facebook and Twitter pages in honor of DNA day!)

So, what are you doing for National DNA Day?  Here are a few suggestions to consider:

  • Invite a new family member to your DNA Group
  • Start a new DNA Group on a seperate branch of your family tree
  • Share your knowledge of your ancient ancestral haplogroup with a neighbor
  • Encourage a family member or friend to become involved in genetic genealogy

Ancestry.com DNA has dropped its test prices, saving you up to 45%, so why not celebrate National DNA Day with a $79 test!

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April 25th, 2009
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Comment Number:
1
Written by:
Areta Bullock Edling
Posted on:
April 26, 2009 at 1:35 am

Attended teachers college with US Senator John Sherman Cooper and Anna Mae Purcell, the first woman judge in California. Also attended Eastern State Teacher’s College. Richmond, KY. Taught school for 46 years and died of a heart attack in 1957. He had 17 children – Anna Mae Black, Irvin Edwin Bullock, Robert Samuel Bullock, Viviana DeBorde, William Bullock, Kennesaw Mountain Bullock, Roberta Cromer, Curtis Bullock, Flonnie Matherly, Rosa Elizabeth Washburn/Wilford, Ruth Nichols, James Bullock, Anita Young, Hiatt Bullock, Boyd Bullock, Areta Bullock Trump/ Edling, Alene Dean.

Comment Number:
2
Written by:
Topics about Ancestrys » Archive » Ancestry.com Blog - » Ancestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA Day
Posted on:
April 26, 2009 at 9:07 am

[...] Wendy Jessen placed an interesting blog post on Ancestry.com Blog – » Ancestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA DayHere’s a brief overviewAncestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA Day. Posted by Wendy Jessen; April 25, 2009. Celebrated annually on April 25, National DNA Day commemorates both the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA in 1953 and the completion of … [...]

Comment Number:
3
Written by:
Topics about Rootsweb » Archive » Ancestry.com Blog - » Ancestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA Day
Posted on:
April 26, 2009 at 11:07 pm

[...] Wendy Jessen put an intriguing blog post on Ancestry.com Blog – » Ancestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA DayHere’s a quick excerptAncestry.com DNA celebrates National DNA Day. Posted by Wendy Jessen; April 25, 2009. Celebrated annually on April 25, National DNA Day commemorates both the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA in 1953 and the completion of … [...]

Comment Number:
4
Written by:
Kent Myers
Posted on:
April 27, 2009 at 12:25 am

I find the DNA testing extremely fascinating and I have become interested in using DNA testing to validate my record’s research. Although, tracking down other descendants seems to be only half of the battle. Getting them to take the test is proving to be challenging. People are hesitant to take the test for reasons of privacy and expense. Even an offer by me to pay for their test is met with reluctance. Most people don’t want someone else to pay their way. It would be helpful if Ancestry could come up with a solution to this problem. One idea might be for Ancestry to sell coupons good for either a free DNA test or a percentage discount on a test. Researchers could purchase these coupons, or earn them as rewards, and then offer them to other descendants who they would like to see tested. I think people would be more receptive to receiving a coupon for a free test than an offer to outright pay for their test.
Kent.

Comment Number:
5
Written by:
Elaine Miller
Posted on:
April 27, 2009 at 6:25 pm

I have been fascinated with the DNA thing for about 10 years since I met the first person to have their DNA checked purely for genealogical purposes that I knew of. I was absolutely in awe to see that it told this person they were 16% Native American, 9% European, etc. I always felt it wasn’t anything I had to do and there was always something else to spend the money on. A cousin of my mom passed away with no children and everyone of us got a little money. From the minute I found out about that, I made the decision to have the DNA done. I did not do any research because I was always so impressed with ancestry.com but I must admit I was disappointed. No percentages and everything was so vague, I have found no benefit to it. I still plan to find a company with the type results I want and do it again.

Comment Number:
6
Written by:
Wendy Jessen, Ancestry.com
Posted on:
April 27, 2009 at 11:56 pm

Elaine, DNA genealogy is such an exciting field. It truly is the marriage of genetics and genealogy that make it work, though. Tests that provide a percentage are often only looking at a very few areas on the DNA; therefore, if additional locations are analyzed, the outcome will likely be a different percentage breakdown and/or could be different between siblings. These tests like other ancient ancestry tests are, however, interesting. If your interest, though is in finding potential matches with whom you may share a common ancestor, the DNA testsing options which Ancestry.com DNA offers are right for you.

Comment Number:
7
Written by:
Wendy Jessen, Ancestry.com
Posted on:
April 28, 2009 at 12:01 am

Kent, thank you for your suggesstion. We have discussed similar concepts, but believe it or not, there are some downsides to this from our perspective. We are open to ideas that help improve and grow our groups and will consider other options. I wonder, if you might be successful in sending the kit to the intended party with a description of it as a gift or a discounted test? If you try this, let us know. We shall continue to discuss improvements and new features for our groups. Thank you for your feedback.

Comment Number:
8
Written by:
Elaine Miller
Posted on:
April 28, 2009 at 6:01 am

I have corresponded with a DNA match with whom I might share a common ancestor. He was nice enough but told me that unless I found his surname in my research, he said he didn’t know what to tell me. I did not have a comeback for that.

Comment Number:
9
Written by:
Wendy Jessen, Ancestry.com
Posted on:
April 30, 2009 at 11:44 am

Elaine, Ancestry.com DNA will notify you of a potential match within 7 generations as the database continues to grow. It’s important when reviewing matches that both individuals were tested on the majority of markers Y33 or Y46, in the case of a paternal test. You want to match on all but two or three markers.

If your match is with a person who had a 12 marker test, for example, you would want to upgrade that individual and see if there still is a match with the higher resolution test.

If there is a match, and the surnames are different there could have been an adoption, illegitimacy or name change. It is with the marriage of DNA and paper genealogies that will reveal where the actual common paternal ancestor is.

Comment Number:
10
Written by:
Janice
Posted on:
May 3, 2009 at 3:47 pm

I just cannot afford all this…

Comment Number:
11
Written by:
chica08
Posted on:
May 4, 2009 at 7:52 am

I too am disappointed in the fact that my DNA test from ancestry.com didn`t show me any kind of percentage of anything protaining to my inidian hertiage,etc…lineage. I would love to see the site come up with such being avaliable to us.

Comment Number:
12
Written by:
Brenda
Posted on:
May 6, 2009 at 5:26 pm

I just don’t understand any of this, especially the number of “differences”. I have a list of over 20 people as possible matches, some of them have differences of 1 or 2. Why do you show these people as possible matches, if there’s no way they could be related. I don’t get it. And I don’t understand how my brother’s results first showed people as close as 4 generations, but now that you have decided on which haplogroup he belongs “B” there’s no match within 70 generations; what gives?

Comment Number:
13
Written by:
Wendy Jessen, Ancestry.com
Posted on:
May 6, 2009 at 11:50 pm

Brenda, Y DNA and mtDNA differ in their inheritance patterns, their usefulness in genealogy vs anthropology, the laboratory process and in deciphering among potential matches. For instance, mtDNA is a great ancient ancestry tool, but its near ancestry (recent genealogy) value is not as great. It is however helpful in a specific case where you have a specific hypothesis. If the results do NOT match, then you can conclude that the individuals do NOT share a common maternal ancestor; if, however, they do match you can NOT conclude that they do since many people will share the same mtDNA result and its “interpretation” therefore is that you share common ancient ancestry.

Y DNA, on the other hand, has a much greater utility for recent genealogical interpretation. If two individuals have tested on enough markers and differ on only a few (1-3), it can be concluded that they would share a common paternal ancestor in a genealogically reasonable time frame. The next step is collaborating with the potential match to determine where in your family histories the common ancestor lies.

You indicated a lag in the haplogroup designation and then an indication of “B” for a paternal test. This tells me that the DNA was sent for a SNP confirmatory test and that your haplogroup designation has been confirmed, not just predicted. Haplogroup B is of African descent. If you have specific questions about the process, your matches, or interpreting any of the data, please contact our client services team at dna@ancestry.com. Thanks!