MyHeritage DNA has produced a fascinating video that shows what happens to that cheek swab DNA sample that we send them for testing. For those of us who have an active amateur interest in DNA research, this short 1 minute, 47 second video adds depth and additional understanding to what we read. Many thanks to the MyHeritage DNA team for putting this together! Click on the following link to check it out. Watch the video here: https://vimeo.com/189511362/3715da3689
MyHeritage has posted a terrific blog that takes on the many frequently asked questions that readers may have about MyHeritage DNA. Check it out at: http://blog.myheritage.com/2016/11/myheritage-dna-your-questions-answered/
As again proven by the video mentioned above, MyHeritage – one of my favorite companies – has gone into the DNA testing and DNA Family Connections business big-time! The move represents a major turning point for the DNA industry, as MyHeritage DNA has debuted an international mass-market home-testing kit that is simple, affordable and offers some of the best ethnicity reports in the world. Not only that, but coupled with their 85 million users worldwide, 2.1 billion family tree profiles, 7 billion historical records and availability in 42 languages, MyHeritage’s new DNA service will allow genealogists more connections with others than they ever imagined possible.
The MyHeritage DNA kit consists of a simple cheek swab, taking only a minute to complete, with no need for blood or saliva. In other words, no spitting for two minutes! The swab is mailed to MyHeritage DNA’s lab for analysis. The genealogist is then invited to view the results at the MyHeritage website (where many of us spend a lot of time, anyway!). Initially, MyHeritage DNA has two main features. they are:
- A detailed ethnicity report that maps the user’s ethnic and geographic origins.
- DNA Matches for finding relatives
They say that “additional features and capabilities are planned for the future.” I’ll bet… Exciting things are in the works.
What makes MyHeritage DNA unique in another way, is the Founder Population project. “More than 5000 participants have been handpicked for this project by MyHeritage from its 85 million members, by virtue of their family trees exemplifying consistent ancestry from the same region or ethnicity for many generations. In the next few months, the project will be completed, resulting in a rich DNA data set of more than 100 ethnicities that will enable MyHeritage to show users their ancestral roots with far greater resolution than other services.” They have been mailing these kits everywhere – “from Uzbekistan to Fiji, from Greenland to South Africa, and every corner of the globe.” Standard ethnicity reports are currently available. However, the new “expert reports” will be released at no additional cost to users once the Founder Population project is completed.
I know what my DNA ethnic ancestry is, but what really excites me is that, when the DNA test facilitates a match between two people who have the same ancestor or ancestors, family trees and historical records are often essential for piecing together the exact relationship path between them. Remember that MyHeritage has 2.1 billion worldwide family tree profiles in their linked databases (of which over 4000 are mine!). Once my results are in, I can view family trees of the majority of my DNA Matches, pinpointing the connection path, automatically identify which surnames and geographical locations they have in common, and find cousins within those 2 billion profiles. Adoptees (like my niece) searching for their biological family without access to their adoption records, will have a great chance of finding family.
MyHeritage DNA is integrated with the other services provided by MyHeritage on all web and mobile platforms. They also have a dedicated standalone mobile app named MyHeritage DNA. I just downloaded this onto my android phone – what a great service!
Users who have already tested their DNA on other services (and I know that many of my readers have) are welcome for a limited time to upload their DNA data to MyHeritage at no cost to benefit from free DNA Matches. The more DNA, the merrier, thus the opportunity for FREE uploads.
