MyHeritage Launches DNA Testing Service

MyHeritage is announcing a new DNA testing service today, MyHeritage DNA.

MyHeritage DNA results will include ethnicity reports and a DNA matching service for $79 + shipping (intro price). The initial reports currently include 25 ethnicities, but will grow to more than 100 thanks to MyHeritage’s Founder Population project, also unveiled today. More than 5000 participants have been handpicked to serve as references for this project by MyHeritage from its 85 million members, by virtue of their family trees exemplifying consistent ancestry from the same region or ethnicity for many generations. (More details in the press release included at the end of this post.)

MyHeritage DNA will integrate viewing family trees for DNA Matches to pinpoint the connection path, and automatically identifying which surnames and geographical locations they have in common (not common ancestors at this time). I am told that a chromosome browser will be coming in future updates and that the testing chip is "industry standard" which should mean it will be compatible with Gedmatch. If you haven't uploaded your raw data from another testing company to MyHeritage yet, you may want to consider doing so quickly before they cease offering that option.

We are still waiting on many details of the test and I will report back when I know more. I am not ready to recommend the product until I learn more about it, but it has exciting potential. In the meantime, I have posted some screen shots of results provided by MyHeritage. Check out the site here. 

Matching Service

Possible Relationship Predictions

Ethnicity Estimates

MyHeritage DNA kit

Official Press Release:

MyHeritage Launches Global DNA Testing Service for Uncovering Ethnic Origins and Making New Family Connections

Unique Founder Population project conducted by the company expected to empower the highest resolution ethnicity analysis available on the market

TEL AVIV, Israel & LEHI, Utah, November 7, 2016 — MyHeritage, the leading international destination for discovering, preserving and sharing family history, announced today the launch of MyHeritage DNA, its global integrated genetic testing service. The move represents a major turning point for the DNA industry, as MyHeritage DNA debuts an international mass-market home-testing kit that is simple, affordable and will offer some of the best ethnicity reports in the world.

With 85 million users worldwide, 2.1 billion family tree profiles, 7 billion historical records and availability in 42 languages, MyHeritage’s new DNA service further strengthens its position as a global leader in family history.

DNA is the hereditary material in the cells of the human body and it carries within it a unique genetic record. The MyHeritage DNA kit enables users to test their DNA to reveal valuable information about their family history and ethnic origins. The kit consists of a simple cheek swab and takes only a minute to complete, with no need for blood or saliva. The sample is then mailed to MyHeritage DNA’s lab for analysis and the user is invited to view the results on the MyHeritage website. In its initial version, MyHeritage DNA provides two main features: detailed ethnicity reports that map the user’s ethnic and geographic origins, and DNA Matches for finding relatives. Additional features and capabilities are planned for the future.

MyHeritage DNA results include fascinating ethnicity reports, showing the percentage of the user's DNA that come from different populations around the world. The initial reports currently include 25 ethnicities, but this will improve dramatically thanks to MyHeritage’s unique Founder Population project unveiled today — the largest of its kind ever conducted. More than 5000 participants have been handpicked for this project by MyHeritage from its 85 million members, by virtue of their family trees exemplifying consistent ancestry from the same region or ethnicity for many generations. In the next few months, the project will be completed, resulting in a rich DNA data set of more than 100 ethnicities that will enable MyHeritage to show users their ancestral roots with far greater resolution than other services. To this end, the company has been sending its DNA kits to project participants far and wide, from Uzbekistan to Fiji, from Greenland to South Africa, and every corner of the globe. Standard ethnicity reports are currently available, with the expert reports to be released at no additional cost to users following the completion of the Founder Population project.

DNA test results complement MyHeritage’s core offerings, including family trees and historical records — the tools traditionally used by family history enthusiasts. DNA can be used to prove or disprove a documented family tree connection, or answer the question of whether two people sharing the same rare surname are actually related. DNA is also indispensable for overcoming seemingly insurmountable obstacles in traditional research, as in the case of adoptees searching for their biological family without access to their adoption records. On the other hand, when DNA locates a match between two people who have the same ancestor or ancestors, family trees and historical records are often essential for piecing together the exact relationship path between them.

MyHeritage DNA is seamlessly integrated with the other services provided by MyHeritage on all web and mobile platforms, as well as offered on a dedicated standalone mobile app released today named MyHeritage DNA. Thanks to its expertise in family trees and its vibrant community, MyHeritage provides its DNA customers with features not offered by most competing services including 23andMe, such as viewing family trees of the majority of their DNA Matches to pinpoint the connection path, and automatically identifying which surnames and geographical locations they have in common. DNA can be a fascinating introduction to the world of family history, and customers who embark on this journey by taking a DNA test can easily use MyHeritage's tools to further explore what made them what they are.

“DNA testing is the future of family history,” said MyHeritage Founder and CEO Gilad Japhet. “We see DNA as a natural evolution of our business and look forward to harnessing it to reunite families, engage in new pro bono projects, and enrich the lives of millions of users.”

MyHeritage DNA kits are available at the affordable introductory price of $79 + shipping (prices vary by location). To order, visit the MyHeritage DNA website. MyHeritage has already amassed a significant number of DNA kits uploaded by its users from other DNA services, providing valuable matches on MyHeritage from day one. With the launch of MyHeritage DNA, the company will cease to offer DNA kits of other vendors. Users who have already tested their DNA on other services are welcome for a limited time to upload their DNA data to MyHeritage at no cost to benefit from free DNA Matches.

About MyHeritage

MyHeritage is the leading global destination for discovering, preserving and sharing family history. As technology thought leaders, MyHeritage is transforming family history into an activity that’s accessible and instantly rewarding. Its global user community enjoys access to a massive library of historical records, the most internationally diverse collection of family trees and ground­breaking search and matching technologies. An extension of the core MyHeritage brand, MyHeritage DNA offers technologically-advanced, affordable DNA tests that reveal users’ ethnic origins and previously unknown relatives. Trusted by millions of families, MyHeritage provides an easy way to share family stories, past and present, and treasure them for generations to come. MyHeritage and MyHeritage DNA are available in 42 languages. www.myheritage.com

Contacts

MyHeritage

Aaron Godfrey, VP Marketing

Phone: +1­-347­-542­7902 Email: aaron@myheritage.com

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Comparing Admixture Test Results Across Companies (otherwise known as "ethnic" breakdowns): FTDNA, AncestryDNA, 23andMe and Geno 2.0 - My Review

With the recent releases of Geno 2.0 and the new 23andMe Ancestry Composition feature, I thought it would be a good time to review and compare my biogeographical ancestry (BGA) results from each of the major DNA testing companies. (BGA is sometimes referred to as ethnic breakdown or admixture analysis.)

My Known Ancestry
First, let's take a look at what I know of my ancestry:
25% Finnish
12.5% Scandinavian (Norway)
12.5% British (England)
~25% Colonial New England (presumably mostly British)
~15.63% Unknown (due to brick walls and immigrant ancestors of unknown origins)
~9.38% German

CeCe's Ancestry Percentages
You can create your admixture pie chart here.

Family Tree DNA's Population Finder
FTDNA's Population Finder (comes with Family Finder) was one of the first commercially available admixture tests based on chip technology.

I am listed as 98.93% Western European (Orcadian) with a 1.31% margin of error. Surprisingly, none of my substantial Finnish ancestry was detected. In my case, Population Finder is not very informative so I am glad that FTDNA will soon be updating this feature. Of course, many people's Population Finder results will be much more detailed than mine, so my experience may not be a typical representation of this feature's capabilities.


AncestryDNA's Genetic Ethnicity
Just a couple of weeks ago, AncestryDNA's admixture tool was the newest entry into the market, but times are changing fast.

It's one thing for results to not be especially informative like Population Finder above, but for them to be downright wrong is disappointing. This feature underestimates my Finnish ancestry and overestimates my Scandinavian ancestry, both substantially.  Because I have tested my mother, I know that they are estimating a large amount of Scandinavian from my mother's side when there is no Scandinavian ancestry in her extensively documented family tree at all. Does that mean that she doesn't have any? Not necessarily, but AncestryDNA estimates that she has 62% Scandinavian and only 23% Finnish (instead of ~50%) ancestry. Although none of these admixture tools are perfect, this one seems to be the most misleading. Notably, I have received many messages from people confounded and even very upset by their AncestryDNA Genetic Ethnicity results.


23andMe's Ancestry Composition
23andMe started out with a very conservative three population breakdown called Ancestry Painting. Customers had long been requesting an updated version. Happily, the brand new Ancestry Composition is much improved. There are three different views and a number of resolution and confidence settings. I prefer the most granular (Sub-regional Resolution) and lowest confidence (Speculative) of those.

Map View:

Chromosome View:

Split View:

This version matches my known ancestry the most closely and is also in line with the ancestral origins represented in my Relative Finder/Family Finder/AncestryDNA match lists. It was fun to see that even my tiny amount of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry was detected. Although this tool is definitely the most informative and flexible, it isn't without problems in this early version. For example, on the Split View, all of my Finnish should be from my maternal side, but you can see that 4.6% of my estimated 21.5% Finnish is erroneously assigned to my paternal side. Conversely, almost all of my Scandinavian is correctly assigned to my paternal side. Since my deceased father wasn't tested at 23andMe, they had to compute the Split View without my father's results, which makes it more challenging. However, since I have tested both of his siblings there (they don't have any Finnish), advancements in the future may help in this regard.  I have many relatives tested at 23andMe and the vast majority of them have results very much in line with their family trees. Both of my sisters' Ancestry Composition results seem even more accurate than mine, as do my mother's, both of my aunts' and my uncle's. (I may just be a bit of a mutant!)

National Geographic Geno 2.0's Who Am I?
As most of you know, the new phase of the Genographic Project started returning results a couple of weeks ago.  Screen shots show the different components that make up my ancestry according to these results.

 

Then, they list the two reference populations that match the combination of my components the most closely. Interestingly, even though I am only one quarter Finnish, they chose Finnish as the first one.

Next, they choose Iberian (Spain and Portugal) as the second population, which doesn't fit with any of my known ancestry.

This admixture tool is different than the other ones reviewed here because it is looking at deep ancestry from thousands of years ago. Personally, as a genealogist, I don't find it as informative or as satisfying as the admixture results that reflect more recent ancestry. I also don't really like how each person's unique combination of ancient components is essentially forced into a single (more recent) population label. This, no doubt, works very well for those whose ancestors have been in one geographic region for hundreds or even thousands of years, but it does not result in highly relevant results for those of us who are highly admixed with ancestry from many different regions. I find the tools that analyze and attempt to categorize small portions of my DNA separately, giving percentages of each region or ethnic group that add up to my total ancestry more meaningful.

Conclusion

At this point in time, for those interested in the origins of their ancestors in the last couple hundred to few hundred years, 23andMe is the best choice in my opinion (especially at the new price of only $99). If your interests are more focused on deep ancestry and anthropology, then Geno 2.0 would be my recommendation. (Remember though that this review is focused on admixture features only. There is much more to take into consideration when purchasing a DNA test for genealogical purposes!)

All of these companies would be well-advised to focus on improving their admixture results for those with non-European ancestry. (Obviously, the majority of their customers have been of primarily European ancestry so far, but optimally everyone will have the the same opportunities of self-discovery in the future.) 23andMe has publicly stated their plans to do so and I'm sure that the other companies will address these shortcomings as well.  AncestryDNA's acquisition of the Sorenson database and National Geographic's vast collection of indigenous population samples puts them in the best position to advance in these areas in the near future, but as 23andMe has demonstrated, customer samples carefully vetted with genealogical information can be utilized with great success as well. As more people are tested, particularly internationally, there will be improvement across the board.

It is important to remember that as intriguing as these admixture predictions are, none of them are 100% accurate at the granular level. We still have a long way to go before anyone can honestly claim to be able to tell a person exactly where their ancestors once lived based on their autosomal DNA alone. However, we are making progress and in a couple of years we will likely be amazed at the advances. In the meantime, the ever-increasing competition between the major companies is proving to be beneficial, spurring all to improve their offerings. So, don't count any of them out quite yet. In a short time, my opinions regarding the "best of" may have completely changed again!

*For more information on these features, please see:

Geno 2.0 - First Look! and My Geno 2.0 results: Step by Step

23andMe's New Ancestry Painting - First Look!

My Review of AncestryDNA's Admixture Tool

[Disclosure: I have relationships with all of the companies reviewed above. I received complimentary Geno 2.0 and AncestryDNA kits for review purposes. I occasionally receive complimentary 23andMe test kits through my work as a volunteer "23andMe Ancestry Ambassador". Additionally, I have affiliate relationships with Family Tree DNA, 23andMe and AncestryDNA and own a small amount of Ancestry.com stock. I always strive for complete objectivity - none of these relationships have affected the opinions stated in this blog in any way.]

23andMe's New Ancestry Painting - First Look!

23andMe's long awaited Ancestry Painting 2 (now called Ancestry Composition) is finally here. I am extremely pleased with my results and those of my family.

The results are presented as a ring chart with settings for different confidence levels and regional detail. The easiest way to figure out how it works is to just click around, trying the different options.

To inspect more closely, click on any of my images to enlarge.

This is my Standard Painting with no regional detail (still 100% Booooring!):

After clicking on the rings or on the + sign, I get this:

 Clicking some more, I get this:

Then, changing from Standard setting to Speculative, I get this:

I vastly prefer the "Speculative" setting since it seems to fit very well with what I know of my ancestral origins.

The pie chart below reflects my known ancestry. It was created from an Excel spreadsheet made by John Tierney and available on his blog.

Ancestral breakdown based on my family tree

Compare to my new AP2 percentages:

My Finnish and Scandinavian percentages seem a bit low, but in my sisters' paintings, they look about right:

 My mother's also appears to fit with what I know of her heritage:

My dad's siblings have an interesting surprise in that we finally got some different colors:

It appears that perhaps I do have some African ancestors after all (in a relatively recent time frame)!

My brother-in-law's ancestry becomes even clearer with the new Ancestry Painting. The small amount of Asian disappeared and was replaced with an increased African component. From what I've seen during beta testing, this appears to be the case with many of those with African American ancestry.

Compare to his old Ancestry Painting:

Another person who is half Indian got this interesting result:

  Compare that to his old Ancestry Painting:

Much improved, right?


 Look at this chart:

Beautiful, huh?


CHROMOSOME PAINTING

I am happy to report that, although we did not get a chance to beta test this portion of the new feature, the chromosome painting, including the X chromosome, is now live.

My painting:

With my Finnish ancestry highlighted:

This is what it looks like with one Finnish parent:

*Note that the paternal and maternal chromosome orientation is not always consistent in placement (top versus bottom) in this chart.
 
This man has one Indian parent:

Pretty clear, isn't it?

And this a beautiful painting:

Don't you agree?


PHASING AND SPLIT VIEW

23andMe uses their own customized version of a phasing engine called BEAGLE to separate out the genetic components inherited from each of our parents, even without actually testing them.  However, if you have a parent or child in the 23andMe database, then your phasing will be improved. This will lead to more accurate assignments as well as more detail contained in your ancestral breakdown (i.e. Italian versus Unspecified Southern European). Therefore, if you are fortunate enough to have tested one of these close family members, you need to let 23andMe know about this by connecting their profiles to your Family Tree.

If you have at least one of your parents in the 23andMe database (and connected to your tree), then you get a third view called "Split View". This view will automatically show you which parent contributed which portions of your ancestry. 

REFERENCE POPULATIONS
                                         
23andme is currently using 22 populations. They can all be seen on my breakdown here:




In order to get more information on the origin of the reference populations, you can click on their labels and it opens up to this:

For some populations, 23andMe has a lot to go on:

                                      
and for some, not so much (as expected):

Obviously, we would all like to see more detail and variety in the African reference populations. For now, this is all there is:

The new Ancestry Composition is expected to continue to change and improve as 23andMe builds their database. As you can see, this is especially important for African Americans. In the announcement on the forum, 23andMe geneticist and Product Manager Mike Macpherson acknowledges, "But there’s still more to do. One important example of this is that the system is designed to be able to update the reference populations. As it is now, Ancestry Composition can dive into European ancestry, but it offers limited resolution into East Asia and Africa. We’re working now on an update that will split up the Eastern Asian and Sub-Saharan African populations."

The 23andMe white paper explaining how this new feature works tells us just how far they have come, "We compiled a set of 7,868 people with known ancestry, from within 23andMe and from public sources. That’s over 15,000 chromosomes, since every individual contributes a chromosome from both their mother and their father. This a big jump over the 210 individuals that powered our original Ancestry Painting feature." The paper further tells us that the public reference datasets that make up the "Public" numbers that you see above, include the Human Genome Diversity Project, HapMap, and the 1000 Genomes Project. It goes on to explain, "Populations may be inherently difficult to distinguish because of historical mixing, or we might not have had enough data to tell them apart. As we obtain more data, populations will become easier to distinguish."

At least for me, this is a very good start! In fact, I think this just might be the best admixture tool I have tried so far. What do you think?