Happy Mother's Day!

In the UK, we celebrate Mother’s Day a little bit early. It’s a tradition dating back to the 16th century, when people would return to their ‘Mother Church’ during the 4th week of Lent to attend a special church service on Mothering Sunday, often accompanied by their own mothers. Over time, it has become a day to celebrate mothers and the roles that they play in our lives.

While we often celebrate mothers for their love, guidance, and nurturing, there’s another aspect of maternal heritage that deserves a closer look: mitochondrial DNA. This Mother’s Day, let’s explore the significance of mtDNA in understanding our ancestry and honouring the women who came before us.

Unlike autosomal DNA, which we inherit in equal measure from both of our parents, mitochondrial DNA is solely passed down from mothers to their children, unchanged from generation to generation. This unique mode of inheritance means that every individual carries a direct link to their maternal ancestors through their DNA. Studying mtDNA can provide insights into maternal lineages stretching back generations.

Often referred to as the powerhouse of the cell, mitochondria (mitochondrion singular) play a crucial role in energy production and cellular metabolism, but beyond their physiological function, mitochondria hold a wealth of genetic information encoded within their DNA. This genetic material harbours clues about our evolutionary past, migration patterns, and population movements, making mtDNA a valuable tool for geneticists and genealogists alike.

So how can Living DNA help you to use this information to learn more about yourself, and your maternal lineage?

Our version 2 “Sirius” chip has been designed to test 3982 mitochondrial SNPs (Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms). This may not seem like many compared to the 759,757 autosomal SNPs it examines, but it’s worth remembering that mitochondrial DNA itself is much smaller than autosomal, with 16,500 bases compared to autosomal’s 3 billion. We can tell you a lot of information about yourself and your ancestors from those genetic markers.

We start with your haplogroup and haplotype. In the example below you can see that the haplogroup is X2, and the haplotype is X2b.

But what is a haplogroup? What is a haplotype?

We often describe a haplogroup as being like a person’s branch on the evolutionary family tree, with the haplotype being the twig or leaf that grows from it. A little like a parent-child relationship, but on a much greater scale, with sometimes hundreds of generations between each step. Click on the History of your Haplogroup to learn more about your maternal ancestors.

Because of the way your motherline is passed down, lots of people might share your haplogroup, but your haplotype is more unique! The most common haplogroup in Europe is H. X, above, is much rarer.

You can see where in the world your haplogroup is found today by clicking on the Coverage Map.

In our example, you can see that haplogroup X is present in 11% of the Druze people, 7.6% of people in Georgia, and 7.2% of people in the Orkney Isles. This doesn’t mean that our Living DNA staff member is 11% Druze, but that she shares a common ancestor with them. This ancient maternal ancestor could have lived thousands, or even tens-of-thousands of years ago.

Scientists and researchers can use haplogroups in even more exciting ways - including mapping out the routes different groups may have travelled as anatomically modern humans left Africa and populated the rest of the world.

By analysing ancient DNA samples from centuries old burial sites, as well as looking at modern population groups, they can estimate where haplogroups were common in ancient times, and even where they may have originated.

The migration map in your Motherline results will show you one proposed route for your ancient ancestors. Each circle on the map shows where a different haplogroup is thought to have originated along the route to your own.

As we express gratitude for all of the maternal figures in our lives this Mother’s Day, let’s also recognise the profound impact of our maternal lineage, which stretches back through the generations. In honouring those who came before us, we honour the strength, resilience, and love that have been passed down through the ages - a legacy with celebrating this Mother’s Day and beyond.