Mothers needed: Trio preferred over motherless
Recently, the AABB (formerly the American Association of Blood Banks) released a statement concerning motherless paternity testing. In this statement AABB reiterated the importance of including the mother in a paternity test and the care that should be taken in performing motherless tests.
Motherless paternity tests, which are often used when a mother is missing or deceased, typically yield conclusive results but can be difficult to analyze, particularly in cases where extended testing is necessary. As discussed last week, DNA experts test a standard set of markers or locations of DNA for each case. These markers analyze both the mother’s and the alleged father’s genetic contributions to the child. When the mother is not included in a paternity test, part of the information at those markers to compare to the child’s DNA is missing and only the alleged father’s potential contribution is considered.
Experts in DNA testing can typically determine paternity without the mother, though it can prove difficult in cases of genetic mutation or related alleged fathers. This is why it is important that you choose a laboratory experienced in DNA testing with exceptional laboratory resources. To ensure that the results of a motherless test are accurate, it is important that you choose a company that employs experienced scientists and provides extended testing when necessary.
In addition to discussing potential problems with motherless test results, AABB elaborated on the inclusion of mothers in DNA testing as a tool for quality control. Even in cases where maternity is not in question, DNA from the biological mother can help the lab confirm relationships and more easily identify or refute an alleged biological relationship between a man and a child. In this capacity, testing the mother’s DNA can curb fraud cases, such as welfare and child support fraud, which are known to involve paternity tests.
When considering a paternity test, choose a test that includes the mother if possible. If you must choose a motherless test, be sure to use the services of a company that is highly trained and experienced in DNA testing and that is able to perform extended testing as necessary.
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, March 20th, 2007 at 12:25 pm and is filed under Home Paternity Tests.
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