My 23andMe DNA Results
Michael Arrington
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I purchased a $1,000 23andMe DNA test back in December, spit in the tube when the kit arrived and, just a few weeks later got the results back. Yeah, its too bad I didn’t wait a month when I could have gotten a kit for free, but a lucky reader was able to get one instead.
I promised to post the results so people can get an idea of what 23andMe is offering (without paying that fee), and here they are. Also, as of last week 23andMe started allowing users to create free demo accounts. if you create one, add my username, TechCrunch, as a friend and I can share the data with you directly.
Results are below:
Genetic Traits
Once you have your test results in, you can view them in the Gene Journal. 23andMe is adding more information over time about your gene map (they added 30 more traits last week, including paternal ancestry). Here’s a screenshot:
Some of the information is just for fun - I have “wet earwax,” for example, and don’t have the “alcohol flush” gene that turns people’s faces red when they drink. I don’t detect odors as well as some people. Less usefully, 23andMe notifies me that I have brown eyes. I have a gene which makes people tall (I’m 6′4). I do not have a sweet tooth.
Then there is the more serious stuff. It turns out I have a gene that makes me substantially more likely to have lower back pain (something that has plagued my father all his life, but not me so far):
I have a higher than normal chance of getting Type 1 diabetes, but a lower than normal of getting Type 2. I have a lower than average chance of getting prostate cancer and Rheumatoid Arthritis. I do not have the genetic material that gives some people resistance to AIDS, although I do have a gene that makes it progress more slowly. I am not genetically resistant to Malaria. I have slightly increased memory performance.
Ancestry
On my mother’s side my ancestors come from Europe, Asia and North Africa. On my fathers side is a common European gene found in the Irish, Basques, British, French (I am mostly European and part Native American). I share, apparently, some genetic stuff with John Adams from my fathers side. My mother, by the way, is about as white as they come - but perhaps that picture is one of her ancestors.
There is a lot more information included in the results, and I’m happy to share this with readers. Just create a demo account and add TechCrunch, and I believe you’ll get access to the data.
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