Genetics students: Is it possible to identify an individuals country of origin?

Say you have a random sample of people from European countries, would it be possible through analysis of their DNA to establish which country they are from(barring naturalised citizens)?

Reply 1

Revd. Mike

17

Original post by Chucklefiend

Say you have a random sample of people from European countries, would it be possible through analysis of their DNA to establish which country they are from(barring naturalised citizens)?

I very much doubt it, not to any particular degree of accuracy. There are certain markers that you can use to identify broad regional heritage, such as North vs South America for example. I'm sure there are probably some SNPs that have a greater frequency in a certain country than in another, but again you probably wouldn't be able to say definitively.

Reply 2

Carlos.D

I watched a programme the other day on the BBC about food origins, it showed the technique of analysing cells from different animals to compare their isotope levels which originate from the local food they eat. Apparently each country have varying isotope levels in their water, nutrients etc, which are specific to that country.

So perhaps you could discover where an individual was brought up?

Reply 3

Revd. Mike

17

Original post by Carlos.D

I watched a programme the other day on the BBC about food origins, it showed the technique of analysing cells from different animals to compare their isotope levels which originate from the local food they eat. Apparently each country have varying isotope levels in their water, nutrients etc, which are specific to that country.

So perhaps you could discover where an individual was brought up?

Aye, it is sometimes possible to narrow down the origin by isotopic analysis, sometimes used in forensics. That's not a genetic thing though.

Genetics students: Is it possible to identify an individuals country of origin?

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