DNA from Sitting Bull's hair confirms living great-grandson's ancestry

WASHINGTON : A sample of Sitting Bull's hair has helped scientists confirm that a South Dakota man is the famed 19th century Native American leader's great-grandson using a new method to analyze family lineages with DNA fragments from long-dead people.

The study represented the first time that DNA from a long-dead person was used to demonstrate a familial relationship between a living individual and a historical figure - and offers the potential for doing so with others whose DNA can be extracted from remains such as hair, teeth or bones. Willerslev said he read in a magazine about the Smithsonian turning over the lock of hair from Sitting Bull's scalp and reached out to LaPointe.

"There existed methods, but they demanded for substantial amounts of DNA or did only allow to go to the level of grandchildren," Willerslev said. "With our new method, it is possible to establish deeper-time family relationships using tiny amounts of DNA."

Singapore Latest News, Singapore Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Police refute ‘false reports’ that remains found in search for Brian Laundrie did not match his DNAPolice refute ‘false reports’ that remains found in search for BrianLaundrie did not match his DNA
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

10 minutes with… The great-great-great-grandson of Louis VuittonWhat’s it like being the sixth generation scion of the Vuitton empire? What does a typical week look like? Who would play Louis Vuitton in a movie? All your questions (and more) answered in CNA Luxury’s chat with Benoit-Louis Vuitton.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »

Battling an unseen enemy in mental health“Please grandson, choose something else, ANYTHING else.”
Source: TODAYonline - 🏆 1. / 99 Read more »

Police refute ‘false reports’ that remains found in search for Brian Laundrie did not match his DNAPolice refute ‘false reports’ that remains found in search for BrianLaundrie did not match his DNA
Source: YahooSG - 🏆 3. / 71 Read more »

Guess who’s playing Ken in the live-action Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie?The Notebook actor Ryan Gosling is said to be very close to signing on to the project, which will be directed and co-written by Greta Gerwig.
Source: ChannelNewsAsia - 🏆 6. / 66 Read more »