I have been tinkering with this site all day and thought it was time to share.  It covers a lot of random information about genetics to help make sense of a complex science.  It includes great articles about the ethics of stem cell research and more.  It also has interactive tools to see the likelihood of having certain eye colors in your family.

I like the eye color paternity test on our site as it has more options for eye color, but the test on the site listed above explains some of the science behind it that our site does not … yet.  I hope you get a kick out of it like I did.

I especially loved learning more about genetically modified foods.

Remember for any questions about paternity testing or DNA testing in general feel free to contact me!

I have been reading a lot in the news about celebrity paternity testing (links generated by my Google alerts for paternity test), and I found a few articles about DNA Testing in cattle.  As a little bit of a science geek it intrigued me.  Thought I would share my findings.

While this is not a service offered by IDENTIGENE, it is out there.   Apparently, DNA Testing is used in cattle farming for many reasons.  For example, a farmer may test new cattle for paternity in a multiple bull breeding pasture.   Reasons for this include determining whether a bull is not breeding as often as others or which bull is producing bulls with ‘defects.’

Other farmers have been known to test the DNA of their cattle to curb out poor traits before breeding them.  There are a few major traits being tested for currently, one is curly calf syndrome.  This type of DNA Testing is done in an attempt to ensure that only the best cattle are reproducing.

While this testing in cattle may in fact produce a better crop of cows, it is eerily familiar.  I know its a reach from cattle DNA testing to a world like GATTACA, but I always get a little curious as to how far eugenics will take our society with DNA testing in its tool box.   But then again I think too much.

Even without this theory in mind the idea that we are using this type of testing for our cattle and various crops is extremely interesting, at least to me.  Really, where will we go next?  Any thoughts or questions?

I am sure that we have all heard of On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin.  Written almost 150 years ago, it is considered to be one the paramount pieces on evolution.  We have since developed theories of evolution based on this book.  We believed that evolution to be a long process that can take numerous generations and will be based on more than the parent’s environment and experiences.

What some people may not know is of the theories of his contemporaries.  One such theory was developed by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck.  This theory now called Lamarckism stated that evolution could be directly impacted by an organism’s parent’s experiences.  His theory specifically was in reference to giraffes and their long necks. 

While this example may not be the best of this theory, the theory itself is being reconsidered after numerous findings by biologists around the world.  After reading an article in Newsweek, I was intrigued by the idea that a parent’s environment and experiences may in fact directly impact a child’s traits that it inherits. 

As an example the article discusses a species of water flea that gains a spiny helmet if their mother had an experience with predators before conceiving.  If not her off spring would not have these spiny helmets.  The DNA of both types of water flea being the same.  This type of trait by Darwin’s theories would have taken numerous generations to develop.

DNA, genetics, and inheritance are all topics that intrigue me.  As a DNA Testing consultant I try to keep up with what is being discovered in the scientific community.  This new finding blows much of what I studied in high school and college out of the water.  I am excited to see what may come out of this research.  I am curious to see how humans are directly impacted by the experiences of their parents. 

However this research turns out there is one thing that will remain true.  The DNA that determines relationships is not directly impacted by these types of findings.  You cannot change the markers that indicate relationship simply by eating more greens or even doing hard drugs.  So, no need to be concerned with your results changing based on this type of information.  I am curious to hear what everyone has to say about this.  Please leave a comment or email me directly at: kstyer@identigene.com