One of the bigger celebrity gossip stories that is going around the internet is about Justin Bieber. There is a fan who is claiming that he is the father of her baby. A paternity test could be used to find out if that is the truth. Paternity tests are also great resources for genealogists.
A twenty year old woman named Mariah Yeater has claimed that Justin Beiber is the father of her baby. The infant is now three months old. Justin would have been sixteen years old at the time that this child was conceived. A representative for Beiber has been strongly denying this allegation.
Paternity tests can be used to scientifically determine if a man is the biological father of a particular individual. Typically, paternity tests are used at the request of a woman who wants to prove that a man is, truly, the father of her baby. She might be interested in this type of test result for legal reasons, or to help her obtain child support, or simply for her own personal reasons.
From what I have been reading, it appears that Mariah Yeater has filed some kind of lawsuit against Justin Bieber. There is potential that a judge will require a paternity test to be preformed. Paternity tests require scientists to take a small DNA sample from the child, the mother of the child, and the man who is said to be the child’s father.
Typically, a small blood sample is used. A cheek sample can also work. DNA is often gathered from infants with a mouth swab. First, the scientists compare the DNA of the baby and the mother. This is how they determine which parts of the baby’s DNA came from his or her mother. Part of the child’s DNA will not match that of his or her mother. That part is compared with the DNA sample taken from the potential father.
There are only two potential results of a paternity test. The test could show that the man is 100% excluded from being the biological father of the baby. Or, it could show that he is the father (or is “included” by greater than 99.9%).
Genealogists could use paternity testing to help them learn who they are related to. It is possible to take a DNA sample from a person post-mortem, (if necessary). A company called FamilyTree DNA sells paternity testing kits that can be used by people who were adopted, in order to find out who their biological parents were.
The test can also be used to help a genealogist discover how closely a genetic match they are to people from five generations of their family. These types of genetic tests can help a genealogist discover his or her heritage.
Image by Adam Sundana on Flickr