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Paternal and Maternal Wallcharts
review on 18 February 2014
by Craig Macpherson
At a Glance
Summary
In summary, DNA Solutions delivered the ancestry wall charts as promised but I felt the website made it seem like the information would be more personalised than it was, and I don’t think the charts were something I could display. I’d suggest your money could go further elsewhere.
Full Review
Whilst researching genetic ancestry testing I came across the DNA Solutions website. They were offering a maternal ancestry wall chart, a paternal ancestry wall chart, or both for a discount. I decided to buy both wall charts which would report on my maternal and paternal lineage.
Product Expectations
The website showed I would receive two large colourful charts that detailed the ancient migratory paths of my maternal and paternal ancestors. Examples were provided so I knew exactly what I was buying.
Ordering Experience
The ordering process was quick and easy, there were no hidden fees and I was told to expect the kit within two working days of purchasing. The kit arrived exactly when they said and two working days after returning my samples I was sent an email confirming receipt.
The Results
I received my results four weeks after the samples reached the lab which was one week longer than stated on the website. A3 paternal and maternal wall charts with written reports were enclosed in a large cardboard envelope marked ‘Please do not bend’. They looked exactly like the examples on the website.
Results Section: Paternal Report
The paternal written report said it was possible to trace the migration of my male ancestors over the past 300,000 years. It contained a copy of my Y chromosome analysis which was presented as a small table of DNA markers (shown below).
My Y chromosome analysis.
There was also a guide in the report that used an example of someone else's analysis to help me understand mine (shown below).
A guide to understanding the Y chromosome analysis.
I was told I was in paternal 'haplogroup' R1b and the report went on to provide a useful chart that explained how the Y chromosome is inherited (shown below). There was a nice explanation of what DNA is and what STRs are, which helped me understand how they’d analysed my DNA. I was then told what a haplogroup was and how they knew which group I was in.
A chart explaining how the Y chromosome is inherited.
Results Section: Paternal Wall Chart
The paternal wall chart (shown below) contained lots of written information and several maps and pictures. The chart seemed to have been designed to look like a certificate that could go on my wall but as it was mainly text, I don’t think it’s something I would put up.
My paternal wall chart.
Half the chart was dedicated to all paternal haplogroups, with the other half focused on my paternal haplogroup in particular. A map showed the paths that all paternal haplogroups took when they migrated from Africa (shown below), and I could see the journey that my haplogroup took to reach Europe. I was interested to see from another map that my paternal haplogroup was most commonly found in Ireland.
The migratory paths of all paternal haplogroups.
Results Section: Maternal Report
The maternal report said it was possible to trace the migration of my female ancestors over the past 150,000 years. It contained a copy of my maternal ‘mitochondrial’ DNA analysis and I was told I was in maternal haplogroup H5. Just like the paternal report there was a great explanation of how they’d conducted the analysis, and a useful chart was included that explained how mitochondrial DNA is inherited.
Results Section: Maternal Wall Chart
Like the paternal wall chart the maternal wall chart contained lots of written information and several maps and pictures. Half the chart focused on all maternal haplogroups, with the other half given over to my maternal haplogroup in particular. I was surprised to see from one of the maps that the migratory path of my maternal haplogroup ended in Scandinavia and not Britain.
The maternal wall chart also included a list of famous people in my maternal haplogroup and I was interested to see that one of my famous haplogroup H ancestors was Marie Antoinette! In another section I was told that my particular maternal haplogroup H5 was identified as being linked to the late onset of Alzheimer’s disease, but I think I’d rather this information hadn’t been included.
For both wall charts I got the feeling they were one of several templates that had been made to look personalised. Both written reports gave me a list of books and websites to read if I wanted to learn more, and both had been personally signed with invitations to get in touch with any questions. Other sites were referenced where I could input my results to find living relatives on my mother and father’s side of the family.
Summary
In summary, DNA Solutions delivered the ancestry wall charts as promised but I felt the website made it seem like the information would be more personalised than it was, and I don’t think the charts were something I could display. I’d suggest your money could go further elsewhere.