Ancestry DNA Testing

Your pre-historical ancestry is buried in your DNA. Leading anthropologists have turned to DNA because they can learn about the past by studying the present in DNA from people around the world. Now you can order the same DNA tests that have revolutionized the study of human history and embark on your own personal expedition of genetic discovery.

Individualized Testing Reports
Scientists study populations of people. The reports that come with your DNA tests explain what the results mean to you as an individual. What's more important, they're written in language you can understand. Our Common Male Ancestor Test and Common Female Ancestor Test include a summary of what scientists have learned about the geographical origin and age of your maternal and paternal lines based on your DNA test results. Our Ethnicity DNA Test provides a global overview of your genetic makeup telling you what percentage of your DNA is shared with Africans, Europeans, Asians and Native Americans. If the Ethnicity DNA testing shows that you have enough European ancestry to proceed, our European Ethnicity DNA Test will further breakdown your European heritage into Northern European, Mediterranean, Middle Eastern, and South Asian.

Deciding Which Family Members to Test
Testing of all individuals in a family is not necessary. Men have both mtDNA and Y DNA. Women have only mtDNA because Y is the sex determining gene and is present in males only. For example, a brother and sister will have the same mtDNA and brothers the same Y DNA. Test results apply to everyone in a given male or female lineage. Please call for help in deciding who to test in order to get a complete set of results for your family. Reporting of results will be based on the family tree that you submit when ordering your tests. Start unraveling the mystery of your DNA and heritage today; call 708-418-8091 to order .

Limitations of testing
Test results are statistical probabilities of your origins and must be interpreted with caution. Human populations have been mixing since they began leaving Africa more than 100,000 years ago. A genetic marker can strongly suggest an origin, but is not 100% proof because no markers have so far been found that exist exclusively in a single group. If all the available tests are run, on any given individual, that still represents only a small percent of their total DNA.

Although you may be predominantly from one of the main human population groups, the markers you discover in yourself can be from other groups because of the extensive mixing of human populations. Scientists believe that we're all descended from fewer than 100,000 individuals and that we're all related! The person sitting next to you, if they're not your parent, child, sibling, uncle or aunt, then most likely they're a distant cousin.

Drug Reaction Testing

Research shows that of all the clinical factors such as age, sex, weight, general health and liver function that alter a patient's response to drugs; genetic factors are the most important. This information becomes even more crucial when you consider the fact that adverse reactions to prescription drugs are killing about 106,000 Americans each year - roughly three times as many as are killed by automobiles. This makes prescription drugs the fourth leading killer in the U.S., after heart disease, cancer and stroke.

We currently offer CYP2D6, CYP2C9, CYP2C19, NAT2 and CYP1A2 screens that can help your physician or pharmacist predict your particular response to many prescription, OTC (over-the-counter) and herbal medicines including those used to treat depression, anxiety, seizures and psychoses; blood pressure, anticoagulation and other heart medicines; anti-diabetic agents, and many pain relievers. These include such important medications as Coumadin (warfarin), Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Effexor, hydrocodone , amitriptyline, Claritin, cyclobenzaprine, Haldol, metoprolol, Rythmol, Tagamet, tamoxifen, Valium, carisoprodol, diazepam, Dilantin, Premarin, and Prevacid (and the over-the-counter drugs, Allegra, Dytuss and Tusstat).

Approximately half of all Americans have genetic defects that affect how they process these drugs. There are four different types of metabolizers, and we all fall into one of these categories for the variable pathways in Cytochrome P450 (this Cytochrome is responsible for creating the enzymes that process chemicals of all kinds through our bodies.) The easiest way to understand this is to picture a two lane highway.

•  If you are the first type which is the norm, you would be an EXTENSIVE metabolizer. Both lanes of the highway are open and moving. Medications prescribed in normal doses will be metabolized by your body.

•  If you are the second type, you would be an INTERMEDIATE metabolizer. This means that one lane of that highway is open and moving and the other lane is not, causing you to metabolize the medications more slowly. In this case you will need a lower dosage, and there is a chance of medications building up in your system causing adverse effects. It is especially important to monitor medications if you are in this category.

Intermediate metabolizers through the 2C9 pathway, for instance, have an increased risk of bleeding incidences when taking the common blood thinner Coumadin or warfarin. For this reason, a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association states that screening for CYP2C9 variants may reduce the risk of adverse drug reactions in these patients.

•  The third type is a POOR metabolizer. In this case both lanes of the highway would be stopped. There is a possibility that alternate routes can be found, but this type of metabolizer is potentially very dangerous, as there is a great chance for the medication to build up in your system making you very sick, or even killing you.

For example, a poor metabolizer of phenytoin, a common antiepileptic would not be able to process the drug and would actually have an increased rather than decreased risk of seizure if prescribed this drug.

•  The fourth type of metabolizer is ULTRA EXTENSIVE. This means you have additional lanes for processing, picture an Indy 500 speedway. In this instance, you literally burn through medications. If you were an Ultra extensive metabolizer through the 2D6 pathway and while in surgery and your doctor gave you codeine as a pain killer, you would receive no pain relief because the codeine would be metabolized so fast that it would have little or no effect on you.

The Testing Process

The process is simple. We send you a cheek swab collection kit in the mail. Samples are returned to our laboratory and results are typically available in 10 business days. STAT testing is available with a five-day turnaround for an additional fee.

Currently Available Tests

CYP2D6 (cytochrome P450 2D6) is the best studied of the DMEs and acts on one-fourth of all prescription drugs, including the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), tricylic antidepressants (TCA), beta blockers such as Inderal and the Type 1A antiarrhythmics. Approximately 10% of the population has a slow acting form of this enzyme and 7% a super-fast acting form. Thirty-five percent are carriers of a non-functional 2D6 allele, especially elevating the risk of ADRs when these individuals are taking multiple drugs. Drugs that CYP2D6 metabolizes include Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Effexor, hydrocodone , amitriptyline, Claritin, cyclobenzaprine, Haldol, metoprolol, Rythmol, Tagamet, tamoxifen, and the over-the-counter diphenylhydramine drugs, Allegra, Dytuss, and Tusstat. CYP2D6 is responsible for activating the pro-drug codeine into its active form and the drug is therefore inactive in CYP2D6 slow metabolizers.

CYP2C9 (cytochrome P450 2C9) is the primary route of metabolism for Coumadin (warfarin). Approximately 10% of the population are carriers of at least one allele for the slow-metabolizing form of CYP2C9 and may be treatable with 50% of the dose at which normal metabolizers are treated. Other drugs metabolized by CYP2C9 include Amaryl, isoniazid, ibuprofen, amitriptyline, Dilantin, Hyzaar, THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), naproxen, and Viagra.

CYP2C19 (cytochrome P450 2C19) is associated with the metabolism of carisoprodol, diazepam, Dilantin, and Prevacid.

CYP1A2 (cytochrome P450 1A2) is associated with the metabolism of amitriptyline, olanzapine, haloperidol, duloxetine, propranolol, theophylline, caffeine, diazepam, chlordiazepoxide, estrogens, tamoxifen, and cyclobenzaprine.

NAT2 (N-acetyltransferase 2) is a second-step DME that acts on isoniazid, procainamide, and Azulfidine. The frequency of the NAT2 "slow acetylator" in various worldwide populations ranges from 10% to more than 90%.

Nutritional Genetics

Optimize the health of your skin and bones; heart and mind by optimizing your personal diet and supplement intake. Genetic testing combined with a lifestyle assessment, provide you with a scientifically based, personal blueprint for optimizing health.

Testing examines your personal variations in nineteen genes that scientists have shown play major roles in your body's heart and bone health, detoxification and antioxidant capacity, insulin sensitivity, and tissue repair. Your DNA test results, combined with information from your completed lifestyle questionnaire, result in personalized, realistic steps you can take to improve and maintain your good health. Benefits you can expect include:

•  Easier control of weight by making sure that you are not craving nutrients missing from your diet.

•  Optimize the health and durability of your skin, hair and bones.

•  Reduce your susceptibility to the big three diseases, heart disease, cancer & diabetes, by harmonizing your diet and lifestyle with your genome.

•  Easier compliance with your self-improvement program because personalized advice lets you know that what you are doing is based on your unique needs and will be effective.

Recommendations are based on the unique combination of your genetic makeup, and include customized dietary and nutritional supplementation programs. Concrete information about the following seven areas in which the link between gene variations and lifestyle has been scientifically established is included in the testing and recommendations:

•  Heart Health: Some genetic factors make it more likely that certain individuals will develop heart disease. Simple, easy to follow, advice helps reduce that risk.

•  Bone Health: Certain genetic factors indicate a need for foods that provide your bones with the nutrients they require to stay strong. Specific foods that will help solve this problem are listed.

•  B-Vitamin Use: Many people have genetic variations that interfere with the way their bodies use B vitamins, an important factor in cell growth and maintenance. Use of recommended supplements can solve this common problem.

•  Detoxification Genes: Can determine how well your body cleanses itself of harmful toxins. If necessary, we recommend specific foods to give your cleansing systems a healthy boost.

•  Antioxidants A: Genetically determined level of antioxidants controls how well our bodies neutralize free radicals, destructive molecules involved in aging and a variety of diseases. Supplementation can help minimize these destructive effects.

•  Inflammation: Depending on your genetic profile, you may need certain foods to fight damaging inflammation.

•  Insulin Sensitivity: If your genes increase your risk of insulin sensitivity, we will recommend dietary and lifestyle changes that help prevent this condition and reduce your risk of becoming diabetic.

Why is a personalized diet important?

We all know our health is influenced by what we eat, drink and other well-known lifestyle choices that we make. The latest scientific research shows that for each of us these choices can have greatly differing effects on our health.

Small differences in your genes influence how well your body metabolizes foods, utilizes nutrients and excretes damaging toxins, all of which can affect your general state of health. By finding out if you have any of these variations; you can modify your diet and lifestyle choices to achieve optimum nutrition and health.

For example, if some of your genes place you at risk for heart disease, modifying your diet and exercise habits now will decrease the chance of the disease developing. If your body isn't efficient with B vitamins, an important factor in skin renewal, a modified diet or daily supplement can provide you with the proper amount for healthy skin.

How do I take the nutritional genetic test?
It starts with a DNA sample, which you collect at home by rubbing the inside of your cheek with the set of swabs included in your sample collection kit (please read the instructions carefully to make sure you collect the sample correctly). You then mail us the sample, together with a completed lifestyle questionnaire. The questionnaire asks about your daily eating and other habits.

Three to four weeks after we receive the completed questionnaire and your DNA sample, you'll receive a personal report that evaluates your current lifestyle according to the results of the DNA analysis. Recommendations based on the testing results will offer practical, effective and proven ways to improve your short- and long-term health, help prevent illness, and above all help you feel better. The advice you receive is based on your body's real needs, not on the latest dietary fad.

Your report will contain:

• Your genetic profile for nineteen genes important to your individual nutritional status.
• Specific nutritional supplement advice based on your genetic makeup.
• Personal diet and lifestyle advice for each of the genes tested.
• General information on genes, nutrition and health.
• A guide to vitamins and minerals. What they do and how to include them in your diet.
• A resource directory listing sources for supplements.
• Answers to frequently asked questions.
• Definitions of key terms.

Note: This test is only available to people 18 or older and cannot be sold in the U.K. or New York state. Do not radically alter your diet or lifestyle without first consulting a doctor or specialist.

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