Genetic testing, any of a group of procedures used to identify gene variations associated with health, disease, and ancestry and to diagnose inherited diseases and disorders. A genetic test is typically issued only after a medical history, a physical examination, and the construction of a family pedigree documenting the genetic diseases present in the past three generations have been considered. The pedigree is especially important, since it aids in determining whether a disease or disorder is inherited and likely to be passed on to subsequent generations. Genetic testing is increasingly being used in genealogy, the study of family origins and history.

A genetic disorder can occur in a child with parents who are not affected by the disorder. This situation arises when a gene mutation occurs in the egg or sperm (germinal mutation) or following conception, when chromosomes from the egg and sperm combine. Mutations can occur spontaneously or be stimulated by environmental factors, such as radiation or carcinogens (cancer-causing agents). Mutations occur with increasing frequency as people age. In men this may result from errors that occur throughout a lifetime as DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) replicates to produce sperm. In women nondisjunction of chromosomes becomes more common later in life, increasing the risk of aneuploidy (too many or too few chromosomes). Long-term exposure to ambient ionizing radiation may cause genetic mutations in either gender. In addition to these exposure mutations, there also exist two broad classes of genes that are prone to mutations that give rise to cancer. These classes include oncogenes, which promote tumour growth, and tumour-suppressor genes, which suppress tumour growth.

Chemical, radiological, histopathologic, and electrodiagnostic procedures can diagnose basic defects in patients suspected of genetic disease. Genetic tests may involve cytogenetic analyses to investigate chromosomes, molecular assays to investigate genes and DNA, or biochemical assays to investigate enzymes, hormones, or amino acids. Tests such as amino acid chromatography of blood and urine, in which the amino acids present in these fluids are separated on the basis of certain chemical affinities, can be used to identify specific hereditary or acquired gene defects. There also exist numerous genetic tests for blood and blood typing and antibody determination. These tests are used to isolate blood or antibody abnormalities that can be traced to genes involved in the generation of these substances. Various electrodiagnostic procedures such as electromyography are useful for identifying defects in muscle and nerve function, which often result from inherited gene mutations.

Prenatal screening is performed if there is a family history of inherited disease, the mother is at an advanced age, a previous child had a chromosomal abnormality, or there is an ethnic indication of risk. Parents can be tested before or after conception to determine whether they are carriers.

A common prenatal test involves screening for alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in maternal serum. Elevated levels of AFP are associated with neural tube defects in the fetus, including spina bifida (defective closure of the spine) and anencephaly (absence of brain tissue). When AFP levels are elevated, a more specific diagnosis is attempted, using ultrasound and amniocentesis to analyze the amniotic fluid for the presence of AFP. Fetal cells contained in the amniotic fluid also can be cultured and the karyotype (chromosome morphology) determined to identify chromosomal abnormality. Cells for chromosome analysis also can be obtained by chorionic villus sampling, the direct needle aspiration of cells from the chorionic villus (future placenta).

Women who have had repeated in vitro fertilization failures may undergo preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). PGD is used to detect the presence of embryonic genetic abnormalities that have a high likelihood of causing implantation failure or miscarriage. In PGD a single cell is extracted from the embryo and is analyzed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), a technique used to identify structural abnormalities in chromosomes that standard tests such as karyotyping cannot detect. In some cases DNA is isolated from the cell and analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for the detection of gene mutations that can give rise to certain disorders such as Tay-Sachs disease. Another technique, known as comparative genomic hybridization (CGH), may be used alongside PGD to identify chromosomal abnormalities.

Advances in DNA sequencing technologies have enabled scientists to reconstruct the human fetal genome from genetic material found in maternal blood and paternal saliva. This in turn has raised the possibility for development of prenatal diagnostic tests that are noninvasive to the fetus but capable of accurately detecting genetic defects in fetal DNA. Such tests are desirable because they would significantly reduce the risk of miscarriage that is associated with procedures requiring cell sampling from the fetus or chorionic villus.

Chromosomal karyotyping, in which chromosomes are arranged according to a standard classification scheme, is one of the most commonly used genetic tests. To obtain a persons karyotype, laboratory technicians grow human cells in tissue culture media. After being stained and sorted, the chromosomes are counted and displayed. The cells are obtained from the blood, skin, or bone marrow or by amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling, as noted above. The standard karyotype has approximately 400 visible bands, and each band contains up to several hundred genes.

When a chromosomal aberration is identified, it allows for a more accurate prediction of the risk of its recurrence in future offspring. Karyotyping can be used not only to diagnose aneuploidy, which is responsible for Down syndrome, Turner syndrome, and Klinefelter syndrome, but also to identify the chromosomal aberrations associated with solid tumours such as nephroblastoma, meningioma, neuroblastoma, retinoblastoma, renal-cell carcinoma, small-cell lung cancer, and certain leukemias and lymphomas.

Karyotyping requires a great deal of time and effort and may not always provide conclusive information. It is most useful in identifying very large defects involving hundreds or even thousands of genes.

Techniques such as FISH, CGH, and PCR have high rates of sensitivity and specificity. These procedures provide results more quickly than traditional karyotyping because no cell culture is required. FISH can detect genetic deletions involving one to five genes. It is also useful in detecting moderate-sized deletions, such as those causing Prader-Willi syndrome. CGH is more sensitive than FISH and is capable of detecting a variety of small chromosomal rearrangements, deletions, and duplications. The analysis of individual genes also has been greatly enhanced by the development of PCR and recombinant DNA technology. In recombinant DNA technology, small DNA fragments are isolated and copied, thereby producing unlimited amounts of cloned material. Once cloned, the various genes and gene products can be used to study gene function both in healthy individuals and those with disease. Recombinant DNA and PCR methods can detect any change in DNA, down to a one-base-pair change, such as a point mutation or a single nucleotide polymorphism, out of the three billion base pairs in the human genome. The detection of these changes is facilitated by DNA probes that are labeled with radioactive isotopes or fluorescent dyes. Such methods can be used to identify persons who are carriers for inherited conditions, such as hemophilia A, polycystic kidney disease, sickle cell anemia, Huntington disease, cystic fibrosis, and hemochromatosis.

Biochemical tests primarily detect enzymatic defects such as phenylketonuria, porphyria, and glycogen-storage disease. Although testing of newborns for all these abnormalities is possible, it is not cost-effective, because some of these conditions are quite rare. Screening requirements for these disorders vary and depend on whether the disease is sufficiently common, has severe consequences, and can be treated or prevented if diagnosed early and whether the test can be applied to the entire population at risk.

Once the domain of oral traditions and written pedigrees, genealogy in the modern era has become grounded in the science of genetics. Increased rigour in the field has been made possible by the development and ongoing refinement of methods to accurately trace genes and genetic variations through generations. Genetic tests used in genealogy are mainly intended to identify similarities and differences in DNA between living humans and their ancestors. In some instances, however, in the process of tracing genetic lineages, gene variations associated with disease may be detected.

Methods used in genealogical genetics analysis include Y chromosome testing, mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) testing, and detection of ancestry-associated genetic variants that occur as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the human genome. Y chromosome testing is based on genetic comparison of Y chromosomes, from males. Because males with a common male ancestor have matching Y chromosomes, scientists are able to trace paternal lineages and thereby determine distant relationships between males. Such analyses allow genealogists to confirm whether males with the same surname are related. Likewise, maternal lineages can be traced genetically through mtDNA testing, since the mitochondrial genome is inherited only from the mother. Maternal lineage tests typically involve analysis of a segment in mtDNA known as hypervariable region 1; comparison of this segment against reference mtDNA sequences (e.g., Cambridge Reference Sequence) enables scientists to reconstruct an individuals maternal genetic lineage.

Following the completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003, it became possible to more efficiently scan the human genome for SNPs and to compare SNPs occurring in the genomes of human populations in different geographical regions of the world. The analysis of this information for genetic testing and genealogical purposes forms the basis of biogeographical ancestry testing. These tests typically make use of panels of ancestry informative markers (AIMs), which are SNPs specific to human populations and their geographical areas that can be used to infer ancestry. In 2010 a study using genome-wide SNP analysis incorporating ancestral information successfully traced persons in Europe to the villages in which their grandparents lived. The technique was expected to advance genetic testing intended to map an individuals geographical ancestry.

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