The World's Premier Home Paternity Testing Service

Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture launched a $10 million project—funded by the candy company Mars Inc.— to analyze the complete cocoa genome. According to an Associated Press article, the goal of the project is to help identify and understand what DNA traits make certain cocoa trees susceptible to fungal diseases and draught, and could potentially save cocoa farmers up to $700 million in sick or dead trees annually.

However, in addition to saving cocoa trees and their farmers’ cash, scientists will use the opportunity to understand other genetic properties of the cocoa bean—including the genes that affect its taste properties. Mars Inc., the maker of M&Ms, Snickers and other famous chocolates, has said it will release the findings of the study to the public, including its competitors.

It seems that the uses for genome research are expanding at a rate sweeter than ever.

According to a June 14 online article, male patrons were offered free DNA paternity tests at two pubs in New York and Ireland in an effort to identify descendents of Niall of the Nine Hostages, a 5th-century warlord and king. Any man that was proven to be related to Niall was eligible for free drinks and a free meal.

The Oxford, England, ancestral DNA testing company (affiliated with Oxford University) that is trying to identify more of Niall’s ancestors are able to do so by studying the tested men’s Y chromosome, which can be used to identify men that share a common male lineage. Niall—who’s name eventually became the source for the common Irish name O’Neill—had 12 sons, and could have had millions of descendants. In the U.S., researchers estimate that around 2 percent of Irish-American men could be descendants of the Irish King.

The researchers hope that by offering the DNA tests at the pubs, they can make “serious genetic research… less dusty and scientific,” one scientist said.

Beta Genetics’ sister company performs DNA tests similar to this one. DNA Diagnostics Center (DDC) can test two or men to see if they share the same Y chromosome, called Y-STR testing. This test can confirm whether or not two or more men descended from the same paternal line. For more information on Y-STR testing, please visit DDC’s resource page.

Zookeepers in Basel, Switzerland, made a shocking discovery when they analyzed DNA from a young gorilla as part of data it keeps on animals born in captivity.

A DNA test showed that young Chelewa was not fathered by 17-year-old gorilla Kisoro as zookeepers assumed. Within captive gorilla tribes, it has been known by scientists and zookeepers that only male gorillas 12 years or older have the “right” to mate with females in their tribe. But in the case of Chelewa, normal mating rituals seem to have been oddly overturned. The DNA test proved that a much younger male—9-year-old Viatu—had fathered Chelewa by mating with one of the tribe’s females.

In an AFP online article, zookeepers called the situation “almost unbelieveable,” and that by mating with a female at such a young age, Viatu had “broken all the rules that apply in gorilla communities.”

It seems young Viatu certainly has shaken up this zoo’s gorilla clan with his sneaky monkey business!

According to a USA Today article published online last week, Danica Patrick’s “need for speed” may be due in part to genes she inherited from her parents, who also participate heavily in “thrill” sports, especially snowmobile racing.

Danica Patrick became the first woman to win an IRL event in April and raced last weekend at the Indy 500, where a collision prevented her from finishing the race with only 29 laps remaining.

After studying people who participate in high-risk sports and thrill-oriented behavior, neuroscientists and sports psychologists have established a link between the level of dopamine produced by the brains of these thrill-seekers and their behavior.

Specifically, these people often come from families made up of individuals who produce higher-than-average dopamine. Dopamine is a brain chemical that acts as a messenger involved in reward, motivation and mood.

Scientists and sports psychologists also note that repetitious practice of a behavior—a thrilling one or not—can lead the brain to establish it as “normal,” and can lead the person repeating the behavior to essentially go into “autopilot.” Coupled with high dopamine levels, this feeling of a risky behavior being routine and “normal” can lead to an increased sense of fearlessness in the people who continuously perform these activities.

Along with incredible skill, these factors combine to make Danica Patrick a speeding success on the racetrack. Even Danica thinks, though, that it all comes down to her genes.

“I think racing is in my blood, my DNA,” she said.

Recently, DNA testing has been in mainstream media quite often, and a hit TV show is no exception. Throughout its most recent season, the tangled plot of ABC’s Brothers & Sisters included a major knot involving a decades-old paternity question. Now, as the show prepares to launch its third season this fall, trailers make it clear that the Walker family’s paternity questions are far from answered, as the search for Mr. Walker’s alleged child continues and the family’s estate waits anxiously to see if it will encompass another heir.

For more information on DNA paternity testing, please visit Beta Paternity’s Testing information page.

The following is a follow-up to our earlier article on the mystery of Anastasia, and the role DNA analysis is playing in solving it.
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According to a news article released last week, scientists have confirmed the remains of two bodies dug up in Russia last year that they previously believed were those of Tsar Nicholas II’s two children. DNA testing and analysis proved that these two bodies did in fact belong to the royal family that was assassinated by the Bolsheviks in 1918.

Since then, historians and scientists alike have been unsure of how many of his family members were killed along with Tsar Nicolas II. Specifically, scientists have had difficulty identifying the bodies of his five children, but the identities of three bodies near the Tsar and his wife Alexandra have proved particularly difficult to identify— those believed to be Maria, Alexei and Anastasia.

This identity question has led to an intriguing mystery throughout much of the twentieth century, with several women coming forward claiming to be the Tsar’s youngest daughter Anastasia. As each woman was ultimately determined not to be the long-lost Anastasia, scientists again turned to a shallow grave in Northern Russia for answers.

Last month, DNA analysis began on several sets of bones found charred in the grave. Now, it appears that two of the smaller bodies have been positively identified as Maria and Alexei. Through the process of elimination and added DNA analysis, researchers now believe a body found earlier in their investigation is that of Anastasia. However, scientists are divided in regard to this recent conclusion because of the corroded state of the DNA that was analyzed, and so investigations will continue in hopes of finding additional evidence to strengthen their conclusion.

Russia’s Orthodox Church has not released a position on the matter, saying that it will wait until scientists and historians can definitively agree on exactly whose bodies have turned up where.

While DNA testing has provided some answers in this mystery, other questions still remain. Most notably, researchers and world citizens alike are left to wonder if Anastasia died with her family or if she survived.

According to a Times article published last week, a Margate, England, woman hopes a DNA test can prove her beloved parrot is not missing, but has been stolen and is residing at the local pub.

Sue Parsons’ African Grey parrot went missing in January, and since then she has had no idea where her beloved pet, named Pickle, could be. Then, a friend spotted a bird that closely resembles Parson’s in a cage inside of a pub in the area. Parsons went to the pub to see the look-alike bird for herself, and it was then she began to believe she had found Pickle.

However, the owner of the bar insists that the bird is hers, and that it came from her uncle, who said he bought it months ago from “two identified men,” the article said.

Parsons is certain that the parrot in the pub is hers, and is demanding a DNA test to prove it. She hopes that sloughed off down feathers in Pickle’s former cage can be used as a reference sample; DNA from those feathers and DNA from the unidentified parrot can be compared to see if they match. However, the bird in question’s owner has so far refused to allow anyone, including police, access to the bird for DNA testing.

It seems that this parrot truly is in a pickle.

When you receive your free Beta Self-Collection™ Kit, you will find easy-to-follow instructions included in the materials. The instructions outline several points that are critical to remember when preparing your DNA samples for paternity testing.

As you are taking the buccal (cheek) swabs and preparing them for shipping, please be sure to remember the following:

1. Be sure to LABEL each buccal swab envelope correctly. It is usually best to label one envelope and swab one person at a time to avoid possible mix up of envelopes and samples.

2. Remember to swab ALL OVER the inside of the cheek; try not to rub one spot repeatedly. Rotate the swab while you are rubbing the cheek lining to ensure maximum DNA sample collection. Follow the instructions provided in your kit to ensure that the proper amount of DNA is collected for the paternity analysis.

3. After you have followed the instructions for swabbing each person’s cheek, place swabs in the PAPER ENVELOPES provided. Do NOT put the swabs back into the plastic wrapper. This will cause mold or mildew to grow inside the plastic, and will destroy the DNA sample on the swabs. Beta Genetics cannot perform DNA paternity testing on swabs that have been placed in plastic.

4. Enclose all of the buccal swab envelopes in the Business Reply envelope and mail the kit to our DNA testing laboratory.

If you have more questions, the the video located here shows step-by-step instructions on how to properly prepare your DNA samples for paternity testing using the free Beta Self-Collection ™ Kit. You can also visit http://www.betagenetics.com/dna-collection.html.

Please contact one of our caring case managers at 1-800-798-3810 if you need further assistance.

According to an Associated Press article published late last week, the mystery surrounding the missing Russian Princess Anastasia could be solved later this spring through DNA testing.

Scientists in England, Russia and the U.S. plan to test DNA found in bone fragments that were found in Russia last year. They will compare DNA from the bones to DNA samples known to be from the Czar’s family and descendents.

Scientists are reviewing any biological and genetic material that has been deemed relevant at the request of the Russian prosecutors as part of a reopened investigation of the deaths of the royal family. The bones to be tested were found at a site in Northen Russia where the rest of the Russian royal family was supposedly killed. After the killing, scientists believe the killers doused the bodies in sulfuric acid before burning them to hide or eliminate evidence. However, scientists believe the killers ran out of time to thoroughly destroy all evidence, thus leaving behind these bone fragments. After initial viability testing, scientists have determined that there is indeed enough preserved DNA to move forward with DNA analysis and comparison.

Anastasia was the youngest daughter of Russia’s Czar Nicolas II. Czar Nicolas and his family were murdered during a revolt in the Bolshevik Revolution in the early 1900s. Anastasia was was rumored to have escaped execution, and the mystery surrounding her possible survival is legendary because over the years many women have claimed to be the surviving princess.

The most famous of these women, Anna Anderson, was proven not to be Anastasia after her death in 1984. Scientists compared Anderson’s DNA to DNA samples taken from a descendant of the Russian royal family and determined there was no relation. Anna Anderson’s story became the centerpiece for many media broadcasts about the Anastasia mystery, including the 1956 film Anastasia and consequent news stories, novels, and even a musical.

For more information on how this type of DNA family relationship testing works, visit www.betagenetics.com/genetic_services.html. Results of the DNA testing will be released later this spring, scientists who are involved in the case have said.

When the famous astronomer and scientist Galileo was alive, he became very well known for causing a stir among the authorities of the Catholic Church who had for centuries taught that the Earth was the center of the universe. Throughout his life, Galileo insisted on his theory that the Sun was in fact the center of the universe, and that the Earth revolved around it, not vice versa as previously thought. After his death, when his theory was proved to be true, Galileo was revered as one of the greatest Italian scientists of all time. Once declared a heretic of the Catholic Church, Galileo now rests in a tomb in the famous Basilica of the Holy Cross in Florence, Italy.

Now, Italian researchers are petitioning the Church for permission to exhume his body to perform advanced DNA testing that could shed light on the type or cause of blindness that affected Galileo. These researchers, led by Prof. Paulo Galluzzi, also want to confirm if the woman whose body shares Galileo’s tomb is indeed his daughter, Sister Marie Celeste. The rector of this basilica has so far rejected Galluzi and his team’s request, deeming it disrespectful of the dead and being disrespectful of the basilica itself.

It seems that, even 360 years after his death, Galileo is once again at the center of a debate between science and the Catholic Church.