23andMe's Ancestry Composition reveals people's ancestral origins going back 500+ years

Company introduces the most comprehensive and accurate tool for determining genetic ancestry composition available

2012-12-13

(Press-News.org) Mountain View, Calif. – December 13, 2012 -- 23andMe, the leading personal genetics company, today announced the availability of Ancestry Composition, a new feature that provides state-of-the-art geographic illustration of an individual's ancestral origins. Using 22 reference populations, the feature indicates what percent of a person's ancestry comes from various regions around the world. The analysis includes DNA inherited from all ancestors on both sides of the family. The results reflect where an individual's ancestors lived going back approximately 500 years.

Ancestry Composition offers state-of-the art detail for people with European ancestry, breaking it out into several regions with the ability to identify distinct ancestral origins, such as: British and Irish, Scandinavian, Italian and Ashkenazi Jewish, among others. It also offers very accurate breakdowns for individuals of mixed ancestry, African Americans, Latinos and Native Americans.

With 23andMe's exclusive "Chromosome View," people can see their personal ancestry reflected segment-by-segment on each of their 23 pairs of chromosomes.

"23andMe continues to pioneer genetic genealogy with its new Ancestry Composition," said Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr., host of the PBS program Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr., author of 15 books and the director of Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. "Their groundbreaking features are built with scientific rigor but provide an enjoyable and easy-to-understand way for anyone to explore their ancestry. This feature makes tracing one's ancestral past through genetic makeup both fun and educational."

23andMe also enables people to see the specific ancestry inherited from each parent when at least one parent also uses the service.

"We've taken some recent developments in machine learning and applied those algorithms to genetics in a way that we believe sets new technical standards for the industry," said Mike Macpherson, 23andMe principal product scientist. "Ancestry Composition is truly innovative. It uses public-genetic databases for reference as well as the data set from 23andMe. As a result, the more people join 23andMe, the more powerful and more accurate Ancestry Composition will become."

The company recently presented the research that serves as the foundation for the Ancestry Composition feature at the American Society of Human Genetics annual meeting in San Francisco in November. A white paper outlining the technical detail and methodology of the feature is available on the company's website at: www.23andMe.com/ancestry_composition_guide.

INFORMATION:

Ancestry Composition is the latest innovation from 23andMe to help individuals learn more about their ancestry in an engaging and interactive way. 23andMe continues to offer the popular Relative Finder feature, a powerful way to find and connect with living relatives from all branches of the family tree. You can learn more about exploring your ancestry with 23andMe at: www.23andme.com/ancestry/

About 23andMe

23andMe, Inc. is the leading personal genetics company dedicated to helping individuals understand their own genetic information through DNA analysis technologies and web-based interactive tools. The company's Personal Genome Service® enables individuals to gain deeper insights into their ancestry and inherited traits. The vision for 23andMe is to personalize healthcare by making and supporting meaningful discoveries through genetic research. 23andMe, Inc., was founded in 2006, and the company is advised by a group of renowned experts in the fields of human genetics, bioinformatics and computer science. More information is available at www.23andme.com.

Media Contacts:

Jane E. Rubinstein, jrubinstein@rubenstein.com, 212-843-8287

Alison Hendrie, ahendrie@rubenstein.com, 212-843-8029

[Attachments] See images for this press release:

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

A finding that could help Alpha-1 sufferers breathe more easily

2012-12-13

Scientists have identified a new mutation in the gene that causes the inherited disease known as Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency (Alpha-1), which affects roughly one in 2,500 people of European descent. Alpha-1 can lead to serious lung disease in adults, or liver disease at any age. The finding extends understanding of Alpha-1 at the molecular level, potentially leading to new drug development and better diagnostic tools. Dr Darren Saunders from Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research and Professor Vanessa Hayes, from the J. Craig Venter Institute in San Diego, ...

Moving pictures: Optical entertainments and the advent of cinema

2012-12-13

Primary sources publisher, Adam Matthew, has announced the release of the fourth section of its highly renowned Victorian Popular Culture Portal. "Moving Pictures, Optical Entertainments and the Advent of Cinema" explores the cultural history of optical entertainments from the late 18th century to the early 20th century, bringing to life the rich cultural and scientific history from which cinema was born. From shadow puppets to dioramas, and from zoetropes to Hollywood, the long and varied evolution of visual entertainments is represented through objects, ephemera and ...

Disaster map predicts bleak future for mammals

2012-12-13

MAMMALS could be at a greater risk of extinction due to predicted increases in extreme weather conditions, states a paper published today by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL). Scientists have mapped out land mammal populations, and overlapped this with information of where droughts and cyclones are most likely to occur. This allowed them to identify species at high risk of exposure to extreme weather. The paper, published this week in the journal Conservation Letters, describes the results of assessing almost six thousand species of land mammals in this way. Lead ...

Dolphin hearing system component found in insects

2012-12-13

A hearing system component thought to be unique in toothed whales like dolphins has been discovered in insects, following research involving the University of Strathclyde. The research is challenging ideas about how a large group of insects including crickets and katydids hear, revealing the unexpected similarity to toothed whale hearing. Scientists from the School of Biological Sciences at The University of Auckland, with colleagues from Plant & Food Research in New Zealand, led the research with engineers from the University of Strathclyde working on the biomechanical ...

Common anesthetic agents can be harmful for the development of the fetus

2012-12-13

An anesthetic regimen typically used during surgery on pregnant mothers appears to have a negative effect on the development of the fetus, according to a new study on mice conducted by neurobiologists from the National Center for Toxicological Research, in Arizona. In the article 'Inhalation Anesthesia-Induced Neuronal Damage and Gene Expression Changes in Developing Rat Brain' published earlier this month in Systems Pharmacology, an open access journal by Versita – Dr. Fang Liu and Dr. Cheng Wang describe the effect of major, commonly used anesthetic compounds – Nitrous ...

Scientists develop novel method to study parasite numbers in wild seabirds

2012-12-13

Scientists have developed a new method for studying parasite numbers in the stomachs of individual seabirds in the wild. The technique enables the recording of video footage of worms inside seabird stomachs and is an important step forward in understanding the impact of parasites on seabird populations. The research is published today (13 December 2012) in the scientific journal Methods in Ecology and Evolution. The research team trialled the use of endoscopy, often used in human and veterinary medicine but rarely in field situations, to measure natural parasite loads, ...

Confirmation that studying and child labor are incompatible

2012-12-13

Labour conditions, the amount of hours and working during the morning are the factors that most negatively affect the academic development of children who work. Using data from the 'Edúcame primero Colombia' Project ('Educate me first Colombia' in Spanish), a group of researchers in which the University of Seville participates has confirmed the incompatibility between studying and child labour. The International Labour Organisation states that, in 2010, approximately 215 million children across the world were working. This figure has been progressively decreasing in ...

More than 200 genes identified for Crohn's Disease

2012-12-13

More than two hundred gene locations have now been identified for the chronic bowel condition Crohn's Disease, in a study that analysed the entire human genome. Published today in The American Journal of Human Genetics, scientists at UCL have devised a new method for identifying and mapping gene locations for complex inherited diseases. Using this method, they have been able to identify a large number of additional genes for Crohn's Disease, making a total of more than 200, which is more than have been found for any other disease. For example, there are just 66 known ...

In media coverage of nursing homes, negative stories predominate

2012-12-13

Philadelphia, Pa. (December 13, 2012) – Analysis of media portrayals of nursing homes finds that negative stories outnumber positive stories by five to one, reports a study in the December issue of Medical Care. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part ofWolters Kluwer Health. Negative news coverage of nursing homes may shape public perceptions and consumer care choices, suggest Edward Alan Miller, PhD, MPA, of University of Massachusetts Boston and Denise A. Tyler, PhD, of Brown University. They write, "Our findings suggest that negative reporting ...

Stem cell 'sticky spots' recreated by scientists

2012-12-13

Randomly distributed sticky spots which are integral to the development of stem cells by maximising adhesion and acting as internal scaffolding have been artificially recreated by experts from the University of Sheffield for the first time. Using synthetic foam type materials to mimic the natural process – known as the extracellular matrix or ECM – scientists, from the University of Sheffield and University of California San Diego, created the random stickiness required for stem cells to properly adhere. The findings will better inform researchers across the world of ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

International survey finds that support for climate interventions is tied to being hopeful and worried about climate change

Cambridge scientist launches free VR platform that eliminates the fear of public speaking

Open-Source AI matches top proprietary model in solving tough medical cases

Good fences make good neighbors (with carnivores)

NRG Oncology trial supports radiotherapy alone following radical hysterectomy should remain the standard of care for early-stage, intermediate-risk cervical cancer