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4 - The Science behind DNA Ancestry Testing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 March 2022

Sheldon Krimsky
Sheldon Krimsky
Affiliation:
Tufts University, Massachusetts
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Summary

Most human genetic diversity is found within populations rather than between populations. Scientists have reported that any two individuals within a particular population are as different genetically as any two people selected from any two populations in the world. Given this finding, how can science use a small percentage of genetic diversity between populations as markers of ancestral origins?

Keywords

ancestryancestry informative markers (AIMs)ancient populationsautosomal DNADNA paternityDNA probesDNA testDNA variantsdirect-to-consumer testingforensic DNAF-statisticsgenealogygenetic identitygenetic markersgenetic privacygenetic testingGolden State KillerGrim Sleepermicroarraysmitochondrial DNANative Americanphenotypingracial DNAsingle nucleotide polymorphismsY chromosomal DNA
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Chapter
Information
Understanding DNA Ancestry , pp. 26 - 40
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

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