In a message dated 10/4/2009 12:56:51 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time, scotsman@cafes.net writes: <All of a mother's sons will bear only her mtDNA and, because they are biologically incapable of passing that along to their offspring, male OR female, it dies with them.> ___________________________________________________________________________ So you are saying that all of the grandchildren from sons carry no inherited characteristics from their grandmother's line? That's sort of a blow.

A woman's grandchildren from her sons do not inherit any of her mtDNA. mtDNA passes from a woman to all her children. It dead ends in her sons and is only passed on by the daughters to all their children. In addition to yDNA (men) and mtDNA (men and women) there is autosomal DNA. This is all DNA which isn't either y, x or mt, in other words all the rest of chromosomes. The way autosomal DNA is pass out is not a one from mother, one from dad. It is theoretically possibly for a child to get all his or her autosomal DNA from one parent or the other, but usually there is some sort of division between fifty and one hundred percent. If a woman has a son, she is less related to his son, than she is to his daughter. The daughter has one of her x chromosomes and some of her autosomal DNA. The son only has some of her autosomal DNA. A woman is more closely genetically related to her daughters children. the daughter's son have their grandmother's mtDNA and autosomal DNA. The daughter's daughters have their grandmother's mtDNA, some of her autosomal DNA and may have all or part of one of her x chromosomes. Marleen Van Horne