Biogeographic ancestry is a concept of lineage that looks at kinship and descent based on biogeography, a combination of biology and geography.

The study of ancestry based on mitochondrial DNA, ALU polymorphisms, and other genetic markers has significant implications in law enforcement, medicine, archaeology, and anthropology.

Scientists believe genetic ancestry can help to focus the search for genes that affect individuals' risks of diseases, as well as prevalence and distribution of disease. Others advocate using it as a means of profiling persons for the purposes of law enforcement. In many of the cases, the term is used synonymously with race and can be used to determing the genetic admixture of an individual.

The field is sometimes controversial because of the ethical issues raised by DNA profiling. Some critics argue that biogeographic ancestry is simply a means of reification for a social construct.

References

• Bamshad M. Genetic Influences on Health: Does Race Matter? Journal of the American Medical Association. 2005; 294: 937-946.

• Fernández JR, Shriver MD, Beasley TM, Rafla-Demetrious N, Parra E, Albu J, Nicklas B, Ryan AS, McKeigue PM, Hoggart CL, Weinsier RL, Allison DB. Association of African Genetic Admixture with Resting Metabolic Rate and Obesity Among Women. Obesity Research 2003 11: 904-911.

• Tishkoff SA, Kidd KK. Implications of biogeography of human populations for 'race' and medicine. Nature Genetics 36, S21 - S27 (2004).

External links

• Minorities, Race, and Genomics via Human Genome Project information.

Genetic genealogy