The Different Types of Ancestry DNA Tests
The Three Kinds of Ancestry DNA Tests
Ancestry DNA tests can offer some pretty amazing insights into your family history, helping you discover your ethnic origins and even your distant relatives. So, just how do ancestry DNA tests work? Well, to trace your genealogy through DNA, scientists use a couple different methods. To give you a better understanding of genealogy testing, Dynamic DNA Labs discusses the three most common testing methods.
Y-Chromosome Ancestry DNA Test
Y-Chromosome ancestry DNA tests focus solely on your paternal heritage. Unfortunately, because Y-Chromosomes are only passed from father to son, Y-Chromosome tests only work for males. During the test, scientists determine paternal links by examining the Y-Chromosome on a male patient and comparing it to other Y-Chromosomes in a database. Even if these links are from several generations ago, scientists can determine distant relationships between people, helping you build a better picture of your family tree.
Mitochondrial DNA
As opposed to Y-Chromosome tests, mitochondrial DNA tests examine maternal heritage. Both males and females inherit their mother’s mitochondrial DNA, but males do not pass it on to their children. This type of testing compares mitochondrial DNA samples in a database and attempts to establish connections. Unfortunately, because males do not pass down mitochondrial DNA and women’s surnames often change with marriage, tracking a maternal line can be a little more difficult and complex than tracking a paternal line.Despite the difficulties, these tests can provide valuable insights into your ethnicity or your ancestor’s country of origin.
Autosomal DNA
Out of the three ancestry DNA tests, autosomal DNA tests are the most complex. Unlike Y-Chromosome and mitochondrial DNA tests, autosomal DNA tests examine all of your chromosomes. To clarify, the nucleus of each of your cells contains 23 chromosomes. One of those chromosomes determines your sex (X or Y) while the other 22 pairs are called “autosomes,” and are made up of genetic information from your parents. On each strand of autosomal DNA, there are bits of genetic information from your grandparents, your great-grandparents, and so on.
By comparing your chromosomes to other people in the database, an autosomal DNA can help you find distant relatives. Unfortunately, these tests cannot determine how you are related and it is up to you to connect the dots.
Contact Dynamic DNA Labs
At Dynamic DNA Labs, our team of professional scientists has over 20 years of experience in DNA testing and research. Along with DNA fitness test and paternity tests, we proudly offer ancestry DNA tests to help you trace your genealogy and discover your family tree. To learn more about our services of schedule DNA testing, contact Dynamic DNA Labs today!
