Geneticists need more Orcadian DNA
Article dated: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

Geneticists from Oxford University are looking for more blood samples from Orkney.

Professor Walter Bodmer and colleagues have some samples from Orkney, on which initial analyses have been done but they are looking to expand on this important region, which formed the heart of the Norse Earldom of Orkney.

The researchers have already carried out some analysis of the samples already collected. One variant of the Y chromosome, known as M17, is found in 20 per cent of people from Norway, but is very rare elsewhere in Western Europe. However, in Orkney, almost one in three men have this variant, supporting the historical evidence that Norse Vikings settled there.

In contrast, the M17 variant is not found in areas of England where the Danish Vikings settled, suggesting that Norse and Danish Vikings were significantly different.

The ongoing work will allow scientists at the University of Oxford to study genetic differences, known as genetic variation. Some of this variation contributes to inherited differences in susceptibility to many common diseases, such as cancer and heart disease.

"Our aim is to characterise the genetic make-up of the British population and relate this to the historical and archaeological evidence," said Professor Bodmer.

"We are collecting samples from people in rural areas with all four grandparents born the same area so as to avoid the recent mixing up of populations in urban areas and to reach back in time as far as possible.

"Our samples will provide a valuable control for studies on disease susceptibility which depend on comparing the frequency of genetic markers in disease groups with that in control groups. If we are able to eliminate genetic markers linked to geography rather than disease, then we should be able to minimise the risk of finding spurious associations."

The project, ‘People of the British Isles’, is looking for people over 18 years old to donate their DNA by giving a small sample of their blood. All the volunteer’s grandparents should have been born in the same rural area with a 30-40 mile radius.

For more information, or to register as a donor, see www.peopleofthebritishisles.org