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How does Avuncular DNA Testing work?
How does Avuncular DNA Testing work?
Avuncular DNA Testing determines whether a child's genetic material (DNA) can be compared with that of another person to determine whether that other person is biologically related to that child. As a result of unusual paternity test results which suggested that the biological father of the child was actually the brother of the man being tested, experts originally coined the term "avuncular," which means "resembling an uncle."
Avuncular DNA tests are performed for various reasons.
Avuncular DNA tests are performed for various reasons.
When the possible father is deceased, incarcerated, unwilling, or otherwise unable to participate in a paternity test, an avuncular DNA test is most frequently performed to determine paternity. This test determines whether the biological brother of the tested individual is a biological father. An avuncular DNA test could be used to establish paternity for a variety of reasons, including establishing custody of a child, obtaining Social Security survivor benefits, establishing the validity of a will, or proving the relationship between a U.S. immigration applicant and their U.S. citizen sponsor.
Are Avuncular DNA Tests Accurate?
Are Avuncular DNA Tests Accurate?
The avuncular tests may not provide conclusive results, so it is important to understand this. Due to the fact that they may have the same parents, even a full sibling of the alleged father is not genetically identical to the alleged father and may have inherited genetic markers that the alleged father did not acquire. In most cases, testing a full sibling provides us with only half of the genetic information for an alleged father. Testing the mother of the child is strongly recommended to increase the certainty of the results since it allows us to identify the genetic markers of the child that were inherited maternally and eliminate them from consideration as possible paternal markers. When the mother of the child is not available, DNA testing with an aunt or uncle should not be conducted, as the results are likely to be inconclusive.
Avuncular DNA Tests Can They Be Conclusive?
Avuncular DNA Tests Can They Be Conclusive?
When avuncular DNA tests are conducted between two males, such as a father and son, the likelihood of obtaining a conclusive result is almost always very high. Y-STR DNA testing, or Y-chromosome typing, can be performed for such relationships. Y-chromosomes are unique to males and are passed from their fathers to each of their biological sons. A full brother of an alleged father inherits the same Y-chromosome as his biological sons as the result of this inheritance pattern. A Y-chromosome test of a child and the brother of the alleged father, therefore, can determine if the alleged father cannot be conclusively identified as the child's biological father if their Y-chromosome markers do not match. It is often more likely than not that alleged father is the biological father of the child if their respective Y-chromosome markers match. Females do not have Y-chromosomes, so testing for Y-chromosomes cannot be used in determining uncle-niece relationships, aunt-niece relationships, and aunt-nephew relationships.
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