14 votes

any sites like 23andme that dont sell your DNA to corporations?

Tags: ask.help

I'd really like to have a DNA test done to know my family history beyond 2 generations (adopted relatives)

I've heard numerous times that 23andme will abuse the information they obtain and either target you with ads or sell your DNA to marketing agencies, are there any non invasive DNA tests available online or elsewhere?

10 comments

  1. teaearlgraycold
    Link
    By the nature of submitting your DNA to a company you're also helping to create a DNA database of non-felons, since the information can be subpoenad.

    By the nature of submitting your DNA to a company you're also helping to create a DNA database of non-felons, since the information can be subpoenad.

    23 votes
  2. [3]
    Comment deleted by author
    Link
    1. [2]
      Wes
      Link Parent
      That's already illegal in the United States. Hopefully other countries soon. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_Information_Nondiscrimination_Act

      That's already illegal in the United States. Hopefully other countries soon.

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetic_Information_Nondiscrimination_Act

      6 votes
      1. [2]
        Comment deleted by author
        Link Parent
        1. CR0W
          Link Parent
          It will be an accident. They will call it a breach, and apologize to the many customers. This allows them to "sell" the information, garner sympathy from the public for such a grievous act, and...

          It will be an accident. They will call it a breach, and apologize to the many customers. This allows them to "sell" the information, garner sympathy from the public for such a grievous act, and allows them to dodge any pesky lawsuits or fines.

          1 vote
  3. novac
    Link
    Forget about it. You can't be sure that information won't exist in some form depsite your desire for privacy and no genome-testing compation is going to pass up the opportunity to sell your...

    Forget about it. You can't be sure that information won't exist in some form depsite your desire for privacy and no genome-testing compation is going to pass up the opportunity to sell your information to pharmaceutical companies. Try looking for physical documentation of family lineage.

    2 votes
  4. [6]
    novac
    Link
    I originally told you to forget about it (Which wasn't very helpful) but upon further consideration my recommendation is to wait until home genome sequencing kits become publicly available.

    I originally told you to forget about it (Which wasn't very helpful) but upon further consideration my recommendation is to wait until home genome sequencing kits become publicly available.

    1 vote
    1. [5]
      Senipah
      Link Parent
      Is that something on the horizon do you think?

      home genome sequencing kits become publicly available

      Is that something on the horizon do you think?

      1. [4]
        novac
        Link Parent
        I'm no expert by any means but I don't see why not, especially with the strides that genetic science is making. Hopefully somebody with more knowledge of this topic can weigh in. I'm actually...

        I'm no expert by any means but I don't see why not, especially with the strides that genetic science is making. Hopefully somebody with more knowledge of this topic can weigh in. I'm actually taking a human genetics class in college right now so I'll ask my professor.

        1. [3]
          eladnarra
          Link Parent
          It's not a kit that a member of the public could use easily, but the MinIon has been around for a little bit - it's a little sequencing device that plugs into your laptop/desktop with a USB...

          It's not a kit that a member of the public could use easily, but the MinIon has been around for a little bit - it's a little sequencing device that plugs into your laptop/desktop with a USB connection. I've never used it, only learned about it (and nanopore sequencing in general) during university, but it looks like they're already sequencing human genomes with it.

          It's been a while since I took my sequencing class, but I imagine the barrier to members of the public using it would be library preparation. (Nanopore sequencing doesn't require amplification or tagging, so it's simpler than some methods, but even so.)

          2 votes
          1. [2]
            novac
            Link Parent
            Wow, this is very interesting, thanks for sharing. Do you think we'll be seeing more streamlined home kits geared for the layman?

            Wow, this is very interesting, thanks for sharing. Do you think we'll be seeing more streamlined home kits geared for the layman?

            1. eladnarra
              (edited )
              Link Parent
              I definitely think we'll see more sequencing by amateur scientists and folks in DIY biolab hacker/makerspaces. (I'm pretty sure I read an article a few years ago where some folks were doing...

              I definitely think we'll see more sequencing by amateur scientists and folks in DIY biolab hacker/makerspaces. (I'm pretty sure I read an article a few years ago where some folks were doing synthetic bio and sequencing bacterial genes.)

              For the layman, I'm not sure. My very limited experience with sequencing was identifying a bacteria strain using Sanger sequencing in microbiology class. I and my classmates extracted and purified the DNA which was then sent off for PCR and sequencing. It wasn't super hard, but it also wasn't easy. Some people ended up with no DNA at the end of purification, while others got back results that didn't identify the bacteria strain (likely contaminated). A kit for the general public would need to be pretty much foolproof before it caught on, so until it's possible to simplify the process further I'm guessing companies are going to focus on selling sequencing as a service, done in a lab.

              EDIT: While I'm very interested in this area, I'm don't remember all the nitty gritty details — maybe we have some Tildes biologists who have more insight :)

              EDIT 2: another thing to note is that 23and me is genotyping, not sequencing, so I'm not sure about that. (I'm guessing DNA preparation is still a sticking point.)