I want to have my mitochondrial DNA tested. This morning, I heard Mark Gillman on 5fm talking to a scientist who had tested his, and it actually sounded jolly interesting.
For those of you who don`t know, mitochondrial DNA is the DNA in the mitochondria - subcellular structures that provide the cell`s energy - whereas most DNA is found in the cell`s nucleus. The interesting thing about mitochondrial DNA (hereafter referred to as mDNA, since I don`t ever want to type "mitochondrial" again) is that it is passed on only from the mother during sexual reproduction, making it almost a clone of the parent DNA. Normal DNA is diluted by 50% in each offspring, because the father also gets a say in his child`s genetic makeup.
What this means is that using mDNA, uterine lineage can be tested all the way back to a woman called mitochondrial (gah!) Eve. She is the woman who produced an unbroken line of daughters, to whom all our mDNA links us.
Thinking about Eve in these terms gives me a funny feeling in my brain, similar to the one I get when I try to visualise infinity, or accept that the circumference of a rotating disk moves faster than its centre.
At least I`m confident that there is no racial or cultural heritage that I would be embarrassed to have.
Georgina Guedes, editor, ITWeb Brainstorm
But she`s not really the point of this story. What it actually all boils down to is that because there is such a minuscule alteration in mDNA in each generation of women, it is possible to pinpoint the exact maternal ancestry of anyone who is tested.
As the scientist on Mark Gillman`s show pointed out, he had tested another radio presenter who had distant cousins in China. Imagine knowing that somewhere, on a cellular level, you`re walking around with little bits of Chinese ancestry. It`s almost like reincarnation theory for sceptics.
I know that I am made up of English, Portuguese, German, Russian, French, Spanish and Jewish ancestry. But we can trace these influences back only a few generations. The cultural mishmash that might be revealed by further investigation could be a veritable fruit salad of cultures.
I heard about an Afrikaans family that appeared on Carte Blanche when they were featuring mDNA who refused to believe that their results could indicate that they had a black ancestor. At least I`m confident that there is no racial or cultural heritage that I would be embarrassed to have.
So, I`m going to start saving up to have my mDNA tested. And if I`m Boadicea`s great great great great great great great granddaughter, then so be it.
Share