I thought they could only trace ancestors through the Y DNA (i.e. his dad’s side).
I thought they could only trace ancestors through the Y DNA (i.e. his dad’s side).
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He has a brother in Kenya
Wrong. Mitochondrial DNA passes to all children exclusively from the mother. Daughters will transmit the mitochondrial DNA; sons will not. But sons have it. A son of Stanley Ann Dunham could be identified as hers through mitochondrial DNA. But the mortal remains of Stanley Ann were cremated and caste into the sea, so that’s out. So were the remains of her mother. It’s almost as though somebody was trying to avoid a comparison of Obama’s mitochondrial DNA with that of the female ancestors who would transmit it - if they were his ancestors. However, assuming Maya Soetoro-Ng was the daughter of Stanley Ann, Maya’s mitochondrial DNA would have to match Obama’s, IF he was Stanley Ann’s son. Children of the same mother have identical mitochondrial DNA, even though the fathers are different. Obama will not voluntarily surrender mitochondrial DNA, because he knows it will not verify that he is Stanley Ann’s son; to the contrary, it will tend very strongly to prove he is not. (If his mitochondrial DNA matches Maya’s, it will establish they have the same mother, but who that mother is would remain an issue requiring further investigation.)