People ask questions all the time, and it is a feature that makes us different from the rest of the living organisms out there. Now, even though a vast majority of questions troubling mankind will remain unanswered for who knows how long, we have reached the step of evolution which allows us to give relatively precise answers to the ones once considered impossible.
Namely, back in the day, you would have to put your trust in an uncertain piece of data about your ancestry, while nowadays, you can take a seemingly simple DNA test to determine what you want to know. But how precise are commercial DNA tests you can take today? Read the following lines and find out!
Revolution
Ever since the human DNA sequence was mapped, scientific breakthroughs have been making an impact on the way human society moves forward. Is not it awesome that someone can check whether their grandma’s story about their royal ancestry is true or just a legend? Fortunately, now we have means of determining not solely that but also our full genetic origin from the comfort of our home.
Thanks to commercial demand, certain DNA specialists have emerged the market and offered their services to whoever has the means and desire to find out where they come from, or shall we say, who were their ancestors. All you have to do is provide a sample of your saliva and ship it to a company while they will do the rest and get back to you as soon as the tests are over.
Reasonably, there is more than one way to determine who your ancestors are. Likewise, there are almost as many companies claiming to be the best in the business. Regardless of whom you want to entrust your genetic material with, one thing is certain. Namely, the more people engage in this type of DNA test, the bigger the database of verifiable information becomes. Additionally, the market reserved for DNA tests grows, so the number of companies providing this type of service follows the same trend.
Now, the story about genetic testing is not as simple as one might realize in the first place. First of all, an unignorable portion of individuals share the opinion that specific DNA tests are not as reliable as some claim they are. On the other hand, others suspect that specific results could shake the system and potentially compromise relations within families, which they consider unethical. Finally, some individuals have brought into question the true intention of the companies which handle the data and manipulate databases.
Benefits
One can not only find out about their origin but also which steps to take in order not to repeat the same mistakes as their predecessors. Namely, besides obtaining the details about your ancestors, you can learn which inherent diseases you are prone to and do something about them even before they become an issue.
Companies such as CRI Genetics specialize in providing this type of service, so it might be advisable to get in touch with them as soon as possible since the findings could help you improve your life quality with only a few changes to your lifestyle.
Test Types
In a nutshell, there are 3 most commonly used DNA test types one can opt for in order to find out more about their ancestry, and they all work in a different way. Unfortunately, none of the big 3 is 100% accurate, but they will provide you with more pieces of information than you could acquire in any alternative way.
The first, and the most popular test’s purpose is to connect the one who provides the sample of their DNA to their living relatives. It is known as an autosomal DNA test and it allows you to track the lineage of both your biological parents. Even though it is fairly accurate, it cannot provide you with more details than up to six ancestral generations. Additionally, you should be aware that even though you might receive valid information, the data will not state whether the lineage results are associated with your male or female parent.
The Y-DNA test is the type only plausible to males, so a female would not be able to use it due to lack of Y chromosome. Therefore, if a lady would like to use this type of DNA testing, she would have to find a close male cognate with a relatively similar DNA composition. Even though the results would be accurate, they are not practical for the aforementioned reasons.
Finally, the last but not least important DNA test type uses mitochondrial DNA to trace maternal ancestry. In a nutshell, this test allows you to track the feminine lineage since the material that is used as a reference only gets passed from mother to daughter. Still, it has its purpose and it is considered a valid method of finding out about the required information.
Accuracy Rate
We have already explained how each of the 3 tests works, so we advise you to base your selection on previously highlighted guidelines. What we should also emphasize is that there is no 100% accurate test, at least not at the time speaking. What is also important to underline is that the accuracy of the aforementioned techniques grows as we speak. Namely, every test done becomes a part of a large database which allows the scientists to increase the exactness of the results they obtain.
Likewise, it is of utter importance to draw your attention to contemporary technological advancements that potentiate further scientific breakthroughs relevant to DNA analysis. Thus, rest assured that the future will bring additional improvements regarding DNA ancestry tracking and provide even more insight into our genetic material.
Hopefully, the aforementioned pieces of information about DNA testing have brought you closer to what they are envisaged to deliver. Even though the current standards bestow us with opportunities once only imaginable, the future is yet to reveal the secrets we keep inside our DNA.
