Why a DNA test for Liz Warren would NOT settle the question of her N.A. ancestry.

[pnwmom]

If it found some DNA that was connected to Native Americans, yes, she could point to it as establishing a connection. HOWEVER, if they found no Native America. DNA, that would NOT prove she wasn't descended from some Native Americans. (Just that their DNA didn't show up in her gene set.)

All these testing services are limited by the databases they are comparing people's DNA to -- and they don't have a large database of N.A DNA. ALSO, two siblings will have different results, depending on the roll of the genetic dice. So one sibling could have 1/8 N.A. DNA, and the other none -- even though they had exactly the same family tree. (And even though both might have been eligible to enroll in a tribe based on the family tree.)

From a Tech Museum site at Stanford:

http://genetics.thetech.org/ask-a-geneticist/same-parents-different-ancestry

Shouldn’t my sister and I have the same ancestry results for our DNA? We have the same parents.

-A curious adult from California

September 1, 2015

It seems like brothers and sisters should have the same ancestry background. After all, they both got half their DNA from mom and half from dad.

But because of how DNA is passed on, it is possible for two siblings to have some big differences in their ancestry at the DNA level. Culturally they may each say they are “1/8th Cherokee” but at the DNA level, one may have no Cherokee DNA at all.

So yes, it is definitely possible for two siblings to get pretty different ancestry results from a DNA test. Even when they share the same parents.

SNIP

[lindysalsagal]

1. I believe there are some markers for some ancestors, but not necessarily for others.

Also, at this point, her native american ancestors could already have so much european dna, it would be meaningless.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

2. For what it's worth:

A niece of mine (sister's daughter) got her DNA done recently. There was a family legend on her father's side of her family that there was Native American. Sure enough, she got some noticeable (although not very large) NA percent.

But you are right. The data base the company used makes a huge difference. And people really don't understand how much siblings can vary, especially if there's a decent mixture of ancestry.

In my personal case, all four of my grandparents came from Ireland. Sure enough, I am 99.7% Northwestern European, 95.7% British and Irish. One sister is 98% British and Irish, the other 95%. Not a huge difference, but still, this shows how siblings can vary.

And if a particular ancestral lineage is far enough in the past, at some point it will disappear for some descendants.

I honestly don't care if Warren is part Native American. Maybe she is, maybe she isn't. If she personally cares enough to have it tested, great. If she feels it unnecessary, so be it.

Meanwhile, the conversation should be focusing on specifics of what to do about the horrors that Trump is inflicting on us.

[StarryNite]

3. I wondered if mine could be different

from my siblings. My brother had his tested in 2000, so I figured I wouldn't need to have mine tested because we have the same parents. Hmmm maybe I should do it. The only reason being is that I find it interesting.

[pnwmom]

6. Yes, my siblings and I definitely vary -- just like two of us are tan and brown eyed

and one is pale and blue eyed.

In our primary ethnic group, the three of us vary from 77% to 88%. And both my siblings have 6% or more of an ethnic group I don't have at all.

[smirkymonkey]

4. Even so, considering how corrupt and disgusting most republicans are,

this should be a non-issue. It really doesn't matter. EW should just say, look, that is what my parents told me and that's that. Now piss off!

[panader0]

5. My daughter bought me a 23andMe test last year.

In my belief I am one eighth Crow. My grandmother was half Crow.
She was born in Lodge Grass, Montana, on the Crow reservation.
I took the test, making sure I didn't eat or drink for a few hours before.
The test revealed no results. 23andMe sent me a new kit and I repeated
the procedure. Again, I was told there was no result. I may try Ancestry.
I have heard that NAs have trouble with these tests.

[pnwmom]

7. From my understanding, none of the databases have many Native American results,

so that limits their usefulness in making these connections. But this article explains how someone with 1/8 Native American ancestry, based on their family tree, might end up with a test result that shows no N.A. DNA.

Also, I read somewhere that the most common haplotype among Native American men was also the most common among Western European -- so maybe you have some N.A. DNA that is getting mis-identified as European.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

9. limited database

Within just a few generations, the continents of the Americas were virtually emptied of their native inhabitants – some academics estimate that approximately 20 million people may have died in the years following the European invasion – up to 95% of the population of the Americas.

http://www.pbs.org/gunsgermssteel/variables/smallpox.html

Talk about dilution and traces.

Anyway, I consider Senator Warren's "Pocahontas" nickname to be a badge of accomplishment and honor. She rattled the cowardly traitor.

[PunkinPi]

8. You are correct, I did 23&me and NA heritage is in their FAQ (Q & A below)

Q. Why don't my Ancestry Composition results match what I know about my ancestry?

A. We have extremely high confidence in the accuracy of your results and the science behind them. But 23andMe is a genetic testing service, which means we can only show you what is found in your DNA. If your Native American heritage cannot be seen through your DNA, that doesn't mean that your understanding of your family heritage as passed down through the generations is incorrect, only that your genetic heritage does not reveal Native American ancestry.

There are a few common reasons why you may not see the Native American population in your Ancestry Composition results:

• If your most recent Native American ancestor was more than five generations ago, you may have inherited little or no DNA directly from them. The farther back in your history you look, the less likely you are to have inherited DNA directly from every single one of your ancestors. This means that you can be directly descended from a Native American without having any Native American DNA.

• Your Native American ancestry may be assigned to the Broadly East Asian & Native American population. Even using state-of-the-art science, the Native American and East Asian populations are genetically similar, and sometimes they can't be distinguished from each other with high confidence.

• Throughout American history, people without a genetically Native American background have claimed Native American heritage for a variety of social reasons related to the shifting politics of race and indigeneity in the United States. As a result, many families without any genetically Native American ancestors have passed down stories about Native American ancestry. For examples, see this article or the book, Becoming Indian: The Struggle over Cherokee Identity in the Twenty-first Century, by Circe Strum.