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Has anyone submitted a DNA profile to a DNA reunion registry? Can anyone suggest one over another? Do they protect your privacy? I guess it's a little creepy to have my DNA out there in a database, but if we could find our brother that way then I would do it. I just don't trust just anybody with that info about me.
Any advice or suggestions?
I've looked at a couple of DNA registries and I must say I'm thoroughly confused. It seems to me that if we shared the same father, it would be easy. However, we are looking for our half brother from our mother. Apparently, maternal DNA can only show lineage, but can't match two siblings from the same mother.
I don't get it....I'm not a science whiz. Does anyone on here understand how DNA works and if its even worth pursuing?
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One of the most recommended I seem to find on the web is Family Finder Testing with the company, Family Tree DNA. They register your DNA and let you know when you have matches. They can even narrow down relationships to as close as half siblings, first cousins, etc. Genealogists are the primary users so you are a lot more likely to get matches because they are not limited to adoptees. DNA testing has become EXTREMELY popular in the genealogy world. I have called their customer service before and they can answer all your questions about privacy. This has been a very popular DNA company with this particular service. To get details and verify it suits your needs, call their customer support.
There are quite a few options out there for DNA testing that are not really registry related. What you are looking for and want to accomplish depends on what you choose.
I am going to post some examples-
1. You are a male (adoptee or birth parent) and have found the male you are trying to find (adoptee or birth parent). You can show you are father and son by doing a Y-DNA Test. This kind of test shows DNA that is passed through males in a family from father to son and father to son and father to son, etc. Only males can do this test.
You can also do a paternity test which is sometimes more expensive.
2. You are a male or female (adoptee) and have found your birth mother. You can show you are child and mother by doing a mtDNA test. This is DNA passed down from the mother.
You can also do a maternity test which is sometimes more expensive.
I will say that siblingship tests are also done by a lot of companies, but results are not as clear cut and cannot give a definite yes/no answer. They give what is probable, likely, looks like, etc. The results involve percentages and are not as cut and dry as say a paternity test. One of the reasons people use them is they have an option to be done as a chain of custody test. A chain of custody test just means that you went to a collection site and showed ID to prove you took the test. This puts results in the position to be accepted by courts. This test can also be done at home, but this way has no way to prove who provided the samples.
In sibling tests, unfavorable results don't necessarily mean that you are not siblings. It just depends on what DNA was examined and what the sample taken yielded. The results are also sometimes not favorable if only the siblings or half siblings participated. The results have the odds of being much better if the mother of the siblings or mothers of the half siblings participate. The next best scenario is if one mother of the two half siblings participated with the half siblings.
I have heard that people will do something like the Family Finder Test with Family Tree DNA before doing a siblingship test. However, keep in mind that the Family Finder Test is not something one can use for child support, court, and legal things, but may open more doors to other relatives other than even siblings.
Well, since my half brother and I only share the same mother and she is deceased, it doesn't sound like we could get a definitive answer through DNA even if we could find him.
I'm really kicking myself right now, because my mom died of cancer several years ago and, at the time, I had considered putting her hairbrush into a ziploc for future use if necessary. I wish I had done that. I know that sounds terrible.
Hopefully we can figure out his birthdate or exact month/year.
Actually, in your case, a lot of people use Family Finder Test at Family Tree DNA. The test tells people suggested relationships based on the DNA results and gets as specific as siblingship.
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