Fr the Hill mail list..thought I would share so you all can get some grasp on the mtDNA and what it really means. DNA 101....LOL I also know that Oxford Ancestors located in England are slightly cheaper on the mtDNA..Nena Many of you have asked "Why does the Hill DNA Project only test males? Why can't females be tested?" Well, they can but it is extremely complicated and for this reason, I have been hesitant to get into it. However, I will consider doing it if there is enough interest out there. Also,it isn't cheap. Family Tree DNA charges $179, but if you could see the number of tests the lab (Univ. of Arizona) does, and how complicated they are, you would wonder how they could do it for that amount. So, if you have not deleted this email at this point, you probably want to know exactly what kind of testing is involved and what it can do for you. I find it most interesting that each of us inherit an exact genetic copy of certain DNA molecules from our ancestors. Men inherit the DNA found in their y-chromosomes (in the nucleus of each cell), which is passed from father to son for hundreds of generations. Women inherit the DNA found in the area outside the nucleus of each cell, called Mitochondrial DNA, often abbreviated to "mtDNA." This DNA is passed from our mothers to each of her children (male and females) for hundreds of generations. However, only the female passes this genetic material to her children. In other words, the mtDNA the male inherits from his mother is not passed on to his children. How does this help you (a female) in family history research? Just as our paternal lineage (father to son) can be identified by the genetic code in the y-chromosome DNA, our maternal lineage (mother to daughter) can be identified by the genetic code found in the mtDNA. However, one major "fly in the ointment" with mtDNA testing is that the surname of the female changes each generation. With this in mind, it appears to me that there are two basic approaches to using mtDNA testing: (1)through random efforts, and (2) through family history research. In a random approach, a female takes the mtDNA test and hopes to match someone already in the mtDNA database, or hopes that someone will come along at a later date and match her mtDNA. Although the chances of this happening are somewhat remote, it can happen. If it does, then they compare family histories with each other and hope to establish a connection somewhere along the mother-daughter line. In the family history approach, you have to rely heavily on your family history and primary sources of information you have acquired. This is useful in situations where a female has come across another female researching one of her family lines and they think they may have a common female ancestor somewhere in the family tree, but can't prove it. In these situations, mtDNA testing will either prove or disprove their suspected genetic connection. Just always remember that you are looking for a connection in a direct line from mother > mother's mother mother's mother's mother, > etc. In the above situations, you (a female) are researching your maternal mtDNA connections. However, since a male also inherits his mother's mtDNA, you (a female) could also use the above scenarios to test your father's mother's mtDNA line (by having your father's mtDNA tested). Or, if you are a male, you could test your mother's mtDNA line in situations where you don't have a sister and your mother is no longer living (using the mtDNA inherited from your mother). By now, I am sure that I have confused some of you. If there are enough people (female & male) interested in mtDNA testing, I am willing to revise my website and make arrangements with Family Tree DNA in Houston, TX to process you requests for testing. If there isn't much interest, then it isn't worth the effort. For those of you who would like to research this further, just type in mtDNA in you favorite search engine and you will find more information than you will have time to read. Here are three pretty good websites to get you started: http://www.electricscotland.com/familytree/magazine/febmar2003/dna1.htm http://www.as.wvu.edu/~kgarbutt/Matinherit.html http://www.stromsborg.com/geneticsmtdna.htm Best wishes to all,E. Ray Hill http://www.livingston.net/hilldna (DNA website) Note: Please don't ask me a bunch of technical questions about this. I am still going through the learning phase myself and probably can't answer most of them. You can get most of the information you need from the above suggested websites. Just send me a short email to let me know if you ARE interested. If I get 20 to 25 people who are interested, I will probably go forward with the project. GROUP RATE POSSIBLE I have just been informed by Family Tree DNA that if we can get 20 or more people participating in mtDNA testing, we can negotiate a lower rate than $179. I guess it all depends on how many people and how good a negotiator I am. :-) Also, any male participant now in the Hill DNA Project can use his DNA samples already on file with Family Tree DNA, and will only have to pay a fee of $100 to test his maternal line. (Note:I think I may also be able to negotiate a lower rate on this.)E. Ray Hill erayhill@livingston.net http://www.livingston.net/hilldna _________________________________________________________________ The new MSN 8: smart spam protection and 2 months FREE* http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail