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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

JCC Genetic testing (for ancestry, medical, etc.)

Discussion in 'Community' started by solojones, Jan 21, 2016.

  1. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    My Christmas present was a testing kit for 23 and Me, something my family thought was a really weird thing to want for Christmas. I'm anxiously awaiting my results.

    My grandparents spent decades driving to courthouses, cemeteries, and records offices to gather an entire room's worth of old fashioned ancestry records. But I'm interested in what my haplogroups can tell me, or if I legitimately am as translucently white as my Dutch and Scottish ancestry suggests. Obviously it's still fairly limited at this stage, but I'm still curious.

    And then there's the medical side of things. Since the human genome has been unlocked, the possibilities of better understanding diseases and treatments has been really exciting to me. Right now 23 and Me is the only direct to consumer company approved by the FDA to provide info on some of your personal traits and markers in the US. But if you have access to your full results, anyone can upload their data to Promethease, which will show you a list of markers you have that have been linked to disorders or traits via hundreds of scientific research papers.

    So, has anyone else done this? Either with their ancestry or their medical traits? Or been interested in it?
     
  2. poor yorick

    poor yorick Ex-Mod star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA VIP - Game Host

    Registered:
    Jun 25, 2002
    My siblings and I got this for our father for Father's Day. He was somewhat bewildered that we'd choose that of all things, but he seemed interested. There were zero surprises when the results came back, which disappointed me somewhat.
     
  3. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I haven't, and the only contact I've had is dealing with prohibitions in Australia for life insurance providers to request genetic testing results when underwriting a policy.

    Part of me doesn't want to know what's in store. It's like the world's worst lucky dip - "Dementia and cancer? Yay me."
     
    soitscometothis likes this.
  4. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    I strongly suspect that my results would be boring western European with a slight possibility of Native American. Not sure if that's worth $200. :p What's the difference between 23andme and the $100 AncestryDNA thing?
     
  5. IamZam

    IamZam Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    May 19, 2002
    I've never done it, but I've wanted to. My dad's side is Scandinavian and my mom's side is German from Russia, so I've always been curious what might be there since my mom's family's records were destroyed when they left Russia and the Vikings were known for getting around.

    Just a curiosity I've always had. Is the cost very high?
     
  6. Point Given

    Point Given Manager star 7 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Dec 12, 2006
    My stepdad did this last year. To his amusement he found out that he's more Gaelic than African (he's black and has always identified as such)
     
  7. Lord Vivec

    Lord Vivec Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Apr 17, 2006
    I've been considering doing the 23 and me at some point. Do you have to get poked with a needle?
     
  8. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    It uses your spit.
     
  9. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    I just did some research and can see you guys similarly can't be discriminated against for any results in genetic testing (for insurance purposes). Good to see.
     
  10. LostOnHoth

    LostOnHoth Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2000
    Unless you are gay.
     
  11. Boba Nekhbet

    Boba Nekhbet Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2014
    .........a genetic test can't tell you if you're gay
     
  12. LostOnHoth

    LostOnHoth Chosen One star 5

    Registered:
    Feb 15, 2000
    Yes I know I was attempting deadpan humour, but now you've ruined it and I'm scarred and will have to now leave the boards forever.
     
  13. Boba Nekhbet

    Boba Nekhbet Jedi Grand Master star 4

    Registered:
    Nov 30, 2014
    Well, you could always just start over with a different username.
     
    Rylo Ken likes this.
  14. Darth Guy

    Darth Guy Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Aug 16, 2002
    If you do that, you have to pretend to be a 16-year-old girl who really cares about men's rights.
     
  15. Lord Vivec

    Lord Vivec Chosen One star 9

    Registered:
    Apr 17, 2006
    Don't forget to put your old username in your signature to make sure people forget who you are!
     
  16. Ender Sai

    Ender Sai Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Feb 18, 2001
    LostOnHoth, reborn as - AaylaSecure0wned?

    I got it LOH though.
     
  17. mavjade

    mavjade Former Manager star 6 VIP - Former Mod/RSA

    Registered:
    Sep 10, 2005
    I think it's a really interesting idea, I've always wanted to send off for my ancestry, though we're pretty sure we know. I'm just curious if it's right.

    My brother and sister-in-law went to a genetic counselor a few years back and were tested because my SIL's brother died of MD. They didn't know if they wanted to have children or not, but wanted to know if it would pass on if they did. Turns out the chances were high if they were to have kids. They still haven't had kids, I don't know if it's because of that or they just decided they didn't want to, but I do think it was important to them, especially to my SIL, to know. This is the kind of thing I think genetic testing is really good for.
     
  18. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000
    Vivec, all of the tests use either saliva or a cheek swab. They avoid blood because of blood-bourne illnesses and you can do it yourself.


    AncestryDNA only tests your ancestry, that's it.

    23 and Me does the same ancestry stuff, but also tells you:

    * If you are a carrier for several genetic diseases, helpful especially for people wanting to have kids

    * How your genetics affect things like how you metabolize caffeine and lactose

    * Some trait things like male pattern baldness

    * Markers for diseases you yourself may be more susceptible to.

    * They allow you to download your whole code to use with outside companies like Promethease or so you can take them to a doctor.


    Basically, all this DNA testing started with haplogroups for ancestry because it was relatively easy to do and people were already into genealogy. But 23 and Me is actually mostly interested in the health side of things. That's the area with immense growth potential, and they've partnered with several research projects already and brought on a lot of experts from that field (this all per a friend I know who works there).

    23 and Me is indeed twice as much, but you get like 4x as many results. Also it's a lifetime thing, so the more research they and others do, the more your profile will be updated to tell you if they've found out any new stuff.

    However, if you are only interested in Ancestry stuff, it would be dumb to spend twice as much money on 23 and Me.
     
  19. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    Me, during Pregnancy #1, taking a questionnaire at the doctor's office. "Are you or the baby's father of Mediterranean descent?"

    Oh hell. "The baby's father is Italian-American. Why is this question here?" Apparently there is some blood disease that is present in people of Mediterranean descent? Test was negative.

    Me, during Pregnancy #2, in the doctor's office, on the first visit: the doctor throws out that "you are now in a really ugly category called 'advanced maternal age' and we will need to do a lot of testing." A scare tactic and the fancy medical term for "old", all in one place. Thanks. Tests were also negative.

    I have not done any other testing despite the fact that there is a LOT of cancer in my family. I'm not sure how much I really want to know.
     
  20. Kyle Katarn

    Kyle Katarn Force Ghost star 6

    Registered:
    Jul 10, 1998
    My mother gave me an AncestryDNA kit for Christmas last year. Finally sent it off last September and got results back around mid-October. It mostly confirmed what I already knew (save for the ~1% of genes originating from India) and neatly broke down the percentage of genes and where they came from in general. It's nice to have, but offered no details as to haplogroups, mitochondrial DNA, and anything on the Y chromosome. I'll have to shell out for one of the other tests to see if they can shed any light on those.
     
    Ghost likes this.
  21. Mortimer Snerd

    Mortimer Snerd Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Dec 27, 2012

    WTF? Really? They seriously tried to swindle you and indeed your soulless insurance company out of more money with that?!
     
  22. anakinfansince1983

    anakinfansince1983 Skywalker Saga/LFL/YJCC Manager star 10 Staff Member Manager

    Registered:
    Mar 4, 2011
    Yep. 30-minute-long 3D ultrasound plus blood work. "I just had a baby two years ago and my ovaries have not shriveled since then" did not persuade them otherwise. Giving birth after your 35th birthday makes the testing companies hear "cha-ching."
     
    Healer_Leona and IamZam like this.
  23. GrandAdmiralJello

    GrandAdmiralJello Comms Admin ❉ Moderator Communitatis Litterarumque star 10 Staff Member Administrator

    Registered:
    Nov 28, 2000
    I look forward to seeing my royal claims finally confirmed.
     
  24. solojones

    solojones Chosen One star 10

    Registered:
    Sep 27, 2000

    Ahh yeah, AncestryDNA still doesn't do mitochondrial DNA but does do Y chromosome now. 23andMe does all of those, as do several other companies.
     
  25. Leoluca Randisi

    Leoluca Randisi Jedi Grand Master star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 24, 2014
    I am Sicilian,Italian, German, and Irish, and there is a chance that on my German side I might have some Jewish relatives so maybe some Hebrew? none of this is official except for the Italian, German, Irish, and Sicilian my Great Grandfather on my MY Dads Father side of the family was born in Corleone Sicily, my great grandparents on my Grandmothers side my dads mom's side of the family came from Naples Italy from the footsteps of Mount Vesuvius and my mom's mom came over from Germany after WW-2 ... does any of this make sense:p ?