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UNITED KINGDOM, April 13, 2005: The Genographic Project will collect DNA samples from over 100,000 people worldwide to help piece together a picture of how the Earth was colonized. Samples gathered from indigenous people and the general public will be subjected to lab and computer analysis to extract the valuable genetic data. Team leader Dr. Spencer Wells calls the plan “The Moon shot of anthropology.” The US$40 million privately funded initiative is a collaboration between National Geographic, IBM and the Waitt Family Foundation charity. Participating in the five-year study are some of the world’s top population geneticists, as well as leading experts in the fields of ancient DNA, linguistics and archaeology. The project should shed light on the origins of the various peoples of India and neighboring areas.



“We see this as a resource for humanity going into the future. It could potentially become the largest genetic database ever created,” Dr. Wells told the BBC News website. For US$99.95 members of the public will be able to buy a kit that contains all the material needed to add their genetic information to the database. Kits sold to the public contain cheek swabs used to scrape the inside of the mouth for a DNA sample. The swabs can then be mailed to a central laboratory for analysis. After four to six weeks, the results of the analysis will appear on the website behind an anonymous password contained in the kit.



By studying the Y (or male) chromosome and mitochondrial DNA (which is passed down exclusively on the maternal line), scientists have pieced together a broad-brush picture of which populations moved where in the world–and when. What is lacking, says Wells, is the fine detail, which could be filled in by this large-scale project. A total of 10 DNA collection centers located around the world will focus on obtaining samples from indigenous peoples. The genetic markers in the blood of these groups have remained relatively unchanged for generations. To learn more about the Genographic Project, click on “source” above or here.

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