Living DNA launches service

I've been asked to share the following press release from another new kid on the DNA block, Living DNA, at www.livingdna.com:

New DNA test offers people an HD view of their past

28th September 2016 - Somerset, UK

The world’s first DNA ancestry test which allows people to break down their British ancestry to any of 21 regions in the UK and see how their worldwide ancestry has evolved over history has been launched.

Living DNA has been developed in partnership with over 100 world leading genetics experts, including the team behind the People of the British Isles Study 2015 – the first fine-scale genetic map of the British Isles. The new platform is designed to give people the most accurate and detailed estimate of their extended family tree, stretching back thousands of years.

From a simple saliva mouth swab kit, the new test uses the latest DNA testing technology to analyse over 680,000 DNA ‘markers’, and unlock a person’s genetic code to their past. Instead of looking at pieces of DNA in isolation, Living DNA analyses distinct sections of ‘linked DNA’, and then matches those findings to latest academic research using sophisticated software.

Results are displayed on an interactive online platform, breaking down an individual’s ancestry to over 80 worldwide regions, including 21 UK regions – more than any other company.

In addition, Living DNA’s product is the only one of its kind which allows users to look back over multiple generations to see their ancestry throughout human history, and discover when they shared ancestors with people throughout the world. Most other ancestry tests only look at people’s recent family history, typically going back 4 or 5 generations at most.

David Nicholson, managing director of Living DNA, comments:

“Compared to other ancestry tests out there, Living DNA is like viewing your family history on a high definition TV. By combining the latest DNA testing technology with the most robust academic research, we can give users the most accurate picture of their estimated ancestry.”

The ability for people to explore how their extended ‘ancestry family’ has changed over time is a key feature of the new product, according to Mr Nicholson:

“Our understanding of where we come from as individuals depends entirely on how far back in history we look. Our goal is to put people’s past into context in a way that has never been done before, and let people view their ancestry throughout history, to show how everyone in the world is ultimately connected.”

One of the key academic collaborators Living DNA has worked with in developing its new test has been Dr Dan Lawson from the University of Bristol, one of the authors of The People of the British Isles Study 2015 – the first fine-scale genetic map of the British Isles.

Dr Lawson has been instrumental in helping to develop Living DNA’s ground-breaking software which can now match an individual’s DNA to one of 21 regions in the UK for the first time.

“This is a whole new approach to DNA ancestry testing, and it is highly personal,” explains Dr Lawson. “No other method – either in scientific literature or in the field of personal genomics – can identify the ancestry of a single person to the level of regions within the UK.”

Living DNA’s test itself is run on a custom-built “Living DNA Orion Chip”. It is one of the first bespoke DNA chips in the world to be built using the latest GSA technology from market leader Illumina, and tests over 656,000 autosomal (family) markers, 4,700 mitrochondrial (maternal) markers and 22,000 Y-chromosomal (paternal) markers.

A lifetime membership to Living DNA costs £120, including a swab kit, the DNA ancestry test itself and access to a personalised, interactive results platform. Test results typically take 8-12 weeks before they are available, and a bespoke coffee table book of the results costs an additional £39 plus postage and packing. A membership also includes free lifetime updates to people’s results as new ancestry research and population groups are added to the platform and as science evolves.
Quotes

"Compared to other ancestry tests out there, Living DNA is like viewing your family history on a high definition TV. By combining the latest DNA testing technology with the most robust academic research, we can give users the most accurate picture of their estimated ancestry."
David Nicholson, managing director, Living DNA

"Our understanding of where we come from as individuals depends entirely on how far back in history we look. Our goal is to put people’s past into context in a way that has never been done before, and let people view their ancestry throughout history, to show how everyone in the world is ultimately connected."
David Nicholson, managing director, Living DNA

"This is a whole new approach to DNA ancestry testing, and it is highly personal. No other method – either in scientific literature or in the field of personal genomics – can identify the ancestry of a single person to the level of regions within the UK."
Dr Dan Lawson, University of Bristol

COMMENT: The tests being carried out are for autosomal, Y-DNA and mitochondrial DNA tests. The press release says that they test "over 656,000 autosomal (family) markers, 4,700 mitrochondrial (maternal) markers and 22,000 Y-chromosomal (paternal) markers". The mitochondrial DNA follows the maternal line - mum's mother's mother's mother's  etc DNA. Y-DNA follows the paternal line, i.e. your surname line, the father's father's father's father's etc DNA. The autosomal test is for a type of DNA that you inherit from both parents, which can be useful for finding close matches within a few generations on either side. All have their uses. I've not taken the test, so have no idea how it compares to other suppliers such as FamilyTreeDNA or DNA Ancestry.

A minor gripe is that the company tells you they test across the British Isles, but keeps asking you in its video "how British are you?". Ahem...! (Stand down, Ireland, STAND DOWN!!!).

DNA guru Debbie Kennett (who knows more about these things than I ever will!) has a very favourable review of the test at http://cruwys.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/living-dna-new-genetic-ancestry-test.html.

Chris

For details on my genealogy guide books, including A Beginner's Guide to British and Irish Genealogy, A Decade of Irish Centenaries: Researching Ireland 1912-1923, Discover Scottish Church Records (2nd edition), Discover Irish Land Records and Down and Out in Scotland: Researching Ancestral Crisis, please visit http://britishgenes.blogspot.co.uk/p/my-books.html.