I recently presented Mitotree Webinar – What It Is, How We Did It, and What Mitotree Means to You at Legacy Family Tree Webinars. It’s still free to view through June 13th, and after that, it’s available in the webinar library with a subscription. The 31-page syllabus is also a subscription feature.
Thank you to all 1000+ of you who attended and everyone else who has since watched the webinar – or will now.
We had a limited amount of time for Q&A at the end, so Geoff, our host, was kind enough to send me the list of questions from the Chat, and I’m doing the Q&A here. But keep in mind, please, that I’m assuming when I answer that you’ve watched the webinar or are familiar with how the new Mitotree and tools work.
That said, I think this Q&A can help everyone who is interested in mitochondrial DNA. Your genealogy gift from your mother and her female lineage.
Just a quick reminder that the mitochondrial DNA test tracks your direct matrilineal line only, meaning your mother’s mother’s mother’s line on up your tree until you run out of mothers. Of course, our goal is always to break through that brick wall.
This is a wonderful opportunity, because, unlike autosomal DNA, mitochondrial DNA is not admixed with the DNA of the other parent, so it’s a straight line look back directly up your mother’s female line.
Aha Moment!
Geoff said at the end that he had an aha moment during the webinar. Both males and females have mitochondrial DNA inherited from their mother, so we think of testing our own – but forget to obtain the mitochondrial DNA of our father. Testing your father’s mitochondrial DNA means obtaining your paternal grandmother’s mitochondrial DNA, so test your father to learn about his mother’s maternal line.
And it’s Father’s Day shortly.
Q&A
I’ve combined and summarized similar questions to make this short and sweet. Well, as short and sweet as I can make anything!
- Can I benefit from Discover even if I don’t have a full sequence test?
You can benefit from the free FamilyTreeDNA Discover tool with any haplogroup, even a partial haplogroup. Be sure to click the down arrow and select mtDNA before entering the haplogroup if you’re using the public version.
However, to gain the most advantage from your test results and Discover, and to receive your closest matches, you need the full sequence test, called the mtFull, which you can purchase here. If you took one of the lower-level “Plus” tests, years ago, click here to sign in and upgrade or check your account to see if you have the full sequence test.
- What benefits do I receive if I click through to Discover from my account versus using the public version of Discover?
Click any image to enlarge
If you click through to Discover directly from your FamilyTreeDNA account, you will receive features and additional information that are not available in the free, public version of Discover.
You’ll receive additional Notable Connections and up to 30 Ancient Connections based on how many are available and relevant for you.
You’ll also be able to view the Match Time tree, showing your matches, their earliest known ancestors, and where they fit in your haplogroup and haplotype cluster. In this example, two EKAs hinted at a common lineage, which turned out to be accurate after I did some digging.
I think the Match Time Tree is indispensable – the best thing since sliced bread!
The Scientific Details report is also customized for you with your Haplotype Cluster and your private variants.
- Will a child and their mother always have the same haplogroup?
Yes, but if one of them has a mutation that the other doesn’t, or a heteroplasmy, they may be in a different haplotype cluster.
Also, they both need to have taken the full sequence test. Otherwise, the one who did not take the full sequence test will only have a partial haplogroup until they upgrade.
We will talk more about edge cases in Q&A on down the list.
Great question. Sign in to your account.
In the Maternal Line Ancestry section, which is mitochondrial DNA, check to see if both the Plus and Full boxes are pink. If so, you have taken both and you’ll have a new Mitotree haplogroup and haplotype cluster.
If the “Full” box is grey, you can either click there or at the top where it says “Add Ons and Upgrades” to upgrade to the full sequence test.
- Why is it called the Million Mito Project? What were you counting?
When we first launched the project, we hoped for a million full sequence samples to build the initial tree. After removing duplicates, such as parent/child, partial sequence samples such as HVR1/2, unreliable samples from PhyloTree, and including FamilyTreeDNA testers and academic samples, we had between one-third and half a million samples when we launched. The Mitotree and Discover are growing with new testers and groups of samples from archaeological studies, academic samples, and other publicly available resources, following quality analysis, of course.
- Is there a way to confirm that I submitted an mtDNA to the Mito Tree project? I think I submitted my mom’s when you first started, but my husband recently tested, and I don’t remember if we opted him in at that time.
The science team at FamilyTreeDNA is using all of the full sequence tests in the construction of the Mitotree, so you don’t need to do anything special.
- Do or can haplotype F numbers (haplotype clusters) ever become haplogroups?
The answer is maybe. (I know – I’m sorry!)
If you have private variants in addition to your haplotype cluster, then yes, those are haplogroup seeds.
This is my result and I have no additional private variants left to use.
If you don’t have any private variants, or mutations, left over, then no, you won’t receive a new haplogroup for this reason. However, if for some reason the haplogroup splits upstream, you might receive a new haplogroup in the future due to that split.
In addition to the webinar, I wrote about haplotype clusters in the article, Mitochondrial DNA: What is a Haplotype Cluster and How Do I Find and Use Mine?
- How can mitochondrial DNA and the Mitotree be useful for breaking down genealogy in various parts of the world?
There are two aspects to mitochondrial DNA testing.
The first is to connect genealogically, if possible. To do that, you’ll be paying attention to your matches EKAs (earliest known ancestors), their trees, and their locations. You may well need to do some genealogy digging and build out some trees for others.
The second aspect is to learn more about that lineage before you can connect genealogically. Where did they come from? Do they share a haplogroup with any Ancient Connections, and what cultures do they share? Where did they come from most recently in the world, and where do the breadcrumbs back in time lead?
I wrote about this in the article, New Mitotree Haplogroups and How to Utilize Them for Genealogy.
Sometimes, DNA testing of any type is simply a waiting game until the right person tests and matches you. That’s one reason it bothers me so much to see people “not recommend” mitochondrial DNA testing. We all need more testers so we can have more matches.
- When will Globetrekker for mtDNA be available?
I don’t know and neither does the team. The Mitotree is still being refined. For example, we are adding thousands of samples to the tree right now from multiple locations around the world. I probably wouldn’t expect Globetrekker until the tree is officially out of Beta, and no, I don’t know when that will happen either. It’s difficult to know when you’re going to be “finished” with something that has never been done before.
While it’s not Globetrekker, you do have the Matches Map to work with, and the Migration Map in Discover, which also shows the locations of your Ancient Connections.
- During the webinar, Roberta mentioned that her ancestor is German, but she discovered her ancestors were Scandinavian. Can you expand about the “event” that explained this unexpected discovery.
In my case, the church records for the tiny village where my ancestor lived in Germany begin right after the 30 Years’ War, which was incredibly destructive. Looking at Swedish troop movements in Germany, the army of Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden marched through the region with more than 18,000 soldiers. Women accompanied the baggage trains, providing essential, supportive roles and services to the soldiers and military campaign. I’ll never know positively, of course, but given that the majority of my full sequence matches are in Scandinavia, mostly Sweden, and not in Germany, it’s a reasonable hypothesis.
People often receive surprises in their results, and the history of the region plays a big role in the stories of our ancestors.
You don’t know what you don’t know, until you test and follow the paths ahd hints revealed.
- Why do I have fewer matches in the HVR2 region than the HVR1 region?
Think of the mitochondria as a clock face.
The older (now obsolete) HVR1 test tested about 1000 locations, from about 11-noon and the HVR2/3 region tested another 1000 locations, from about noon-1 PM. The full sequence test tests the full 16,569 locations of the entire mitochondria.
Each level has its own match threshold. So, if you have one mutation at either the HVR1 or HVR2/3 level, combined, you are not considered a match. For example, you can match 10 people at the HVR1 level, and have a mutation in the HVR2 level that 4 people don’t share, so you’ll only match 6 people at the HVR2 level.
If you have one mutation in the HVR1 region, you won’t match anyone in either the HVR1 or HVR1/HVR2 regions.
At the full sequence level, you can have three mutation differences (GD 3) and still be considered a match.
So, the short answer is that you probably have a mutation that some of your matches at the HVR2 level don’t have.
In addition to matches on your Matches page, you will (probably) have haplogroup matches that aren’t on your match list, so check Discover for those.
- I have HVR1/HVR2 matches, but none at the full sequence level. Why?
It’s possible that none of your matches have tested at that level.
You have no mutations in the HVR1/2 region, or you would not be a match. If your HVR1/2 matches have tested at the full sequence level, then you have more than 3 mutations difference in the coding region.
- Why do I match people at the full sequence level but not HVR1/2?
The match threshold at the HVR1/2 level is 1, so if you have one mismatch, you’re not listed as a match. However, at the full sequence level, the GD (genetic distance) is 3 mismatches. This tells me you have a mismatch in the HVR1 region, which also precludes HVR2 matching, but less than 4 mutations total. Click on the little “i” button above each match level on the matches page.
- Why don’t all of my matches show on the Match Time Tree?
Only full sequence matches can show on the Match Time Tree, because they are the only testers who can receive a full haplogroup.
- How does a heteroplasmy interfere with mtDNA research?
Heteroplasmies, where someone carries two different nucleotides at the same location in different mitochondrial in their body, are both extremely fascinating and equally as frustrating.
Heteroplasmies can interfere with your matching because you might have a T nucleotide in a specific location, which matches the reference model, so no mutation – like 16362T. Your mother might have a C in that location, so T16362C, which is a mutation from T to C. Your aunt or sister might have both a T and a C, which means she is shown with letter Y, so 16362Y, which means she has more than 20% of both. All three of you probably have some of each, but it’s not “counted” as a heteroplasmy unless it’s over 20%.
The challenge is how to match these people with these different values accurately, and how heteroplasmies should “count” for matching.
I wrote about this in the article What is a Heteroplasmy and Why Do I Care?
Bottom line is this – if you are “by yourself” and have no matches, or you don’t match known relatives exactly, suspect a heteroplasmy. If you ask yourself, “What the heck is going on?” – rule out a heteroplasmy. Check out my article and this heteroplasmy article in the FamilyTreeDNA help center.
- Someone asked about the X chromosome and may have been confusing it with mitochondrial DNA. The X chromosome is not the same as mitochondrial DNA.
The confusion stems from the fact that both are associated with inheritance from the maternal line. Everyone inherits their mitochondrial DNA from their mother. Men inherit their X chromosome ONLY from their mother, because their father gives them a Y chromosome, which makes them a male. Females inherit an X chromosome from both parents. And yes, there are medical exceptions, but those are unusual.
I wrote about this in the article, X Matching and Mitochondrial DNA is Not the Same Thing.
- How do you determine the location of the last mutation? A tester and their aunt are from one country, and another man in the same haplogroup is from another country, but he has tested only the HVR1/HVR2 level.
There are really two answers here.
First, you can’t really compare your full sequence new Mitotree haplogroup with a partial haplogroup based on only the HVR1/2 test. Chances are very good that if he upgraded to a full sequence test, he would receive a more complete haplogroup, and one that might be near the tester’s haplogroup, but perhaps not the same.
For example, my full sequence haplogroup is J1c2f. I have matches with people who only tested at the HVR1/HVR2 level, but they can only be predicted to haplogroup J, with no subgroup, because they are missing about 14,000 locations that are included in the full sequence test.
Using the Discover Compare feature, comparing haplogroup J to J1c2f clearly shows that the mutations that define haplogroup J1c2f happened long after the mutation(s) that define haplogroup J.
You can use other Discover tools such as the Match Time Tree (if you click through from your account), the Time Tree, the Ancestral Path and the Classic Tree to see when the various haplogroups were born.
- My mother took the full sequence test in 2016, so should I look for an upgrade now? She is deceased so can’t retest.
First, I’m sorry for your loss, but so glad you have her DNA tests.
The good news is that you ordered the full sequence right away, so you don’t need to worry about an upgrade failing later. In this case, there is no upgrade because the full sequence tests all 16,569 locations.
Additionally, had you needed an upgrade, or wanted to do a Family Finder test, for example, FamilyTreeDNA stores the DNA vials for future testing, so you could potentially run additional tests.
And lastly, since we’re talking mitochondrial DNA, which you inherit from your mother with no admixture from your father, your mtDNA should match hers exactly, so you could test in proxy for her, had she not already tested.
- Has anything changed in Native American haplogroups?
Absolutely. About 75% of testers received a new haplogroup and that includes people with Native American matrilineal ancestors.
For example, my Native ancestor was haplogroup A2f1a, formed about 50 CE and is now A2f1a4-12092, formed about 1600 CE, so has moved 2 branches down the tree and about 1500 years closer. My ancestor was born about 1683. Her descendant has 58 full sequence matches, 22 in the same haplogroup, and 16 people in their haplotype cluster.
I’m so excited about this, because it helps provide clarity about her ancestors and where they were before she entered my genealogy by marrying a French settler.
- Are mtDNA mutations the same or similar to autosomal SNPs?
A SNP is a single nucleotide polymorphism, which means a single variation in a specific location. So yes, a mutation is a change in a nucleotide at a genetic location in Y-DNA, autosomal DNA, or mitochondrial DNA.
- Can we filter or sort our matches by haplotype on our match page?
Not yet. Generally, your closest matches appear at or near the top of your match list. Of course, you can use the Discover Match Time Tree and you can download your matches in a CSV file. (Instructions are further down in Q&A.)
- Is there a way to make it more obvious that the EKA should be in their matrilineal line? There are so many men as EKAs!
So frustrating. The verbiage has been changed and maybe needs to be revised again, but of course, that doesn’t help with the people who have already entered males. We know males aren’t the source of mitochondrial DNA.
When I see males listed as an EKA, I send the match a pleasant note. I’m not sure they make the connection between what they entered and what is being displayed to their matches. If they have included or linked to a tree, I tell them who, in their tree, is their mtDNA EKA.
I’ve written about how to correctly add an Earliest Known Ancestor. I’ll update that article and publish again so that you can forward those instructions to people with no EKA, or male EKAs.
- I love learning about my ancient connections. I have a new match due to the updates, who is from a neighboring area to my great-great-great-grandmother.
I love, love, LOVE Ancient Connections. They tell me who my ancestors were before I have any prayer of identifying them individually. Then I can read up on the culture from which they sprang.
I’ve also had two situations where Ancient Connections have been exceptionally useful.
One is an exact haplogroup match to my ancestor, and the burial was in a necropolis along the Roman road about 3-4 km outside the medieval “city” where my ancestor lived.
In a second case, there were two villages in different parts of the same country, hundreds of miles apart, and one burial from about 200 years before my ancestor lived was found about 10 km from one of those villages. While this isn’t conclusive, it’s certainly evidence.
- What does the dashed line on the Time Tree mean?
Dashed lines on the time tree can mean two things.
The red dashed line, red arrow above, is the haplogroup formation date range and correlates to the dates at the top of Time Tree, not show in this screen shot. You can also read about those dates and how they are calculated on the Scientific Details tab in Discover.
The brown dashed lines, green arrow above, connect an ancient sample to its haplogroup, but the sample date is earlier than the estimated haplogroup.
At first this doesn’t make sense, until you realize that ancient samples are sometimes carbon dated, sometimes dated by proximity to something else, and sometimes dated based on the dates of the cemetery or cultural dig location.
Archaeological samples can also be contaminated, or have poor or low coverage. In other words, at this point in time, the samples are listed, but would need to be individually reviewed before shifting the haplogroup formation date. Haplogroup formation dates are based on present day testers.
- A cousin and I have been mtDNA tested. What might be gained by testing our other six female cousins/10 or so male cousins?
Probably not much, so here’s how I would approach this.
I would test one cousin who descends from another daughter of the EKA, if possible. This helps to sift out if a haplogroup-defining mutation has occurred.
If you or that cousin has private variants left over after their haplotype cluster is formed, testing a second person from that line may well results in a new haplogroup formation for that branch.
I absolutely would ask every single one of those cousins to take an autosomal test, however, because you never know what tools the future will bring, and we want to leverage every single segment of DNA that our ancestors carried. Testing cousins in the only way to find those.
- In the Mitotree, I am grouped in a haplogroup that, according to the Mitotree Match Time Tree, branched off only about 200 years ago and has four mtDNA testers in it, including me. In fact, my earliest known maternal line ancestor I found using pen-and-paper genealogy was indeed born around 230 years ago and is also the known maternal ancestor for one of these three testers – confirming the Mitotree grouping is correct. But the other two matches in this haplogroup are completely unknown to me. Unfortunately, they do not have a tree online, and they did not respond to several messages. Is there any way to find out more about them using the new Mitotree tools?
First of all, this is great news. Having said that, I share your frustration. However, you’re a genealogist. Think of yourself as a sleuth.
I’d start by emailing them, but in this case, you already have. Tell them what you know from your line and ask if their line is from the same area? End with a question for them to answer. Share tidbits from Discover – like Ancient Connections maybe. Something to peak their interest.
Next, put on your sleiuh hat. I’d google their name and email address, and check Facebook and other social media sites. I’d check to see if they match me, or any cousins who have tested, on an autosomal test. If they do match autosomally, use shared matching and the matrix tool. If they are an autosomal match, I’d also check other testing sites to see if they have a tree there.
- One webinar attendee is haplogroup H1bb7a+151 and is frustrated because they only have eight matches and don’t understand how to leverage this.
Of course, without knowing more, I can’t speak to what they have and have not done, and I certainly understand their frustration. However, in mitochondrial and Y-DNA, you really don’t want thousands of matches. It’s not autosomal. You want close, good matches, and that’s what the Mitotree plus haplotype clusters provide.
Your personal goals also make a lot of difference.
For me, I wanted to verify what I think I know – and received a surprise. I also want to go further back if possible. Then, I want to know the culture my ancestors came from.
First, step through every single one of Discover’s 13 tools and READ EVERY PAGE – not skim. These are chapters in your free book about your ancestor.
Their haplogroup was formed about 1200, so all of those matches will be since that time. The Ancient Connections tell me it’s probably British, maybe Irish – but they will see more from their account than I can see on the public version of Discover.
The Time Tree shows me one haplotype cluster, which is where the tester’s closest matches will probably be, barring a mutation or heteroplasmy.
Looking at the matches, e-mail people, look for common locations in their trees, and see if any of them are also autosomal matches using the Advanced Matching tool.
Looking at the 10 success story examples I used, one man was able to connect 19 of his matches into three groups by doing their genealogy for them. This doesn’t work for everyone, but it will never work if we don’t make the attempt.
- An attendee would like to search on the Earliest Known Ancestor’s (EKA’s) name field.
I would like that too. You can search on surnames, but that’s often not terribly useful for mitochondrial DNA. The Match Time Tree shows the EKA for all full sequence testers.
In the upper right hand corner of your Matches page, there’s an “Export CSV” file link. Click there to download in a spreadsheet format. The EKA is a column in that file, along with both the new Mitotree haplogroup and haplotype F number, and it’s very easy to do a sort or text search from there.
- Several questions about why people have so many more autosomal matches than either Y-DNA or mitochondrial.
There are several considerations.
First, autosomal testing became very popular, often based on ethnicity. There are many times more autosomal testers than there are either Y or mitochondrial.
Second, if you look back just six generations, you have 64 lineages. Y-DNA and mtDNA tests one line each and you don’t have to figure out which line. It also reaches back much further in time because it’s not admixed, so nothing washes out or rolls off in each generation like with autosomal.
Third, the Y-DNA and mitochondrial DNA tests are very specific and granular.
More is not necessarily better. You’re looking for refinement – and mitochondrial is just one line. No confusion. Think how happy you’d be if your autosomal matches weren’t all jumbled together and could be placed into 64 neat little baskets. Think how much time we spend sorting them out by shared matches and other criteria. Both Y-DNA and mitochondrial is already sorted out.
I’ve broken through several brick walls with unrecombined Y-DNA and mitochondrial DNA that could never be touched with autosomal – especially older lines where autosomal DNA is either gone or negligible.
- You mentioned a Facebook group where I can ask questions about mitochondrial DNA?
The mitochondrial DNA Facebook group is the FamilyTreeDNA mtDNA Group, here.
- To the webinar attendee who came to see me more than 20 years ago at Farmington Hills, Michigan, at one of my first, if not the first, genetic genealogy presentation – thank you!
Thank you for attending then when I really had no idea if ANYONE would come to hear about this new DNA “thing” for genealogy. I remember how nervous I was. And thank you for sticking around, continuing to research, and saying hello now!
Closing Comment
Mitochondrial DNA testing is different than autosomal, of course. It’s often the key to those females’ lines with seemingly insurmountable brick walls.
I attempt to collect the mitochondrial DNA of every ancestor. I trace “up the tree” to find people to test who descend from those ancestors through all women to the current generation, which can be males.
To find testers, I shop:
- Autosomal matches at FamilyTreeDNA
- Projects at FamilyTreeDNA
- WikiTree
- FamilySearch
- Ancestry DNA matches
- Ancestry Thrulines
- Ancestry trees
- MyHeritage DNA matches, where ther are a lot more European testers
- MyHeritage Theories of Family Relativity
- MyHeritage Cousin Finder
- Relatives at RootsTech during the month before and after RootsTech when it’s available
- Facebook Genealogy and family groups that appear relevant
When I find an appropriately descended person, I ask if they have already taken either the Y-DNA or mitochondrial DNA test, whichever one I’m searching for at that moment. If yes, hurray and I ask if they will share at least their haplogroup. If they haven’t tested, I tell them I’m offering a testing scholarship.
I will gladly explain the results if they will share them with me. Collaboration is key and a rising tide lifts all ships.
My mantra in all of this is, “You don’t know what you don’t know, and if you don’t test, you’ll never know.” I’ve missed testing opportunities that I desperately wish I hadn’t, so test your DNA and find testers to represent your ancestors.
I hope you enjoyed the webinar. It’s not too late to watch.
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