Project News
SUMMARY OF TEST RESULTS (as of October 31, 2004)
As the number of our study’s participants climbs into the thirties, we can begin to see some patterns emerging from the results. Two distinct groups of McCarthys can be clearly defined and a third group, less well-defined, may become apparent in time. Since the majority of our participants have ancestry that hails from Co. Cork in Ireland, more genealogical information is needed to discern possible geographic locations associated with the two defined groups.
Group A is characterized by these four traits:
- a 24 at DYS447
- a 10 at DYS391
- an 11 at DYS439
- a mutation (either a 15 or 16) at DYS385b.
I would include in Group A, the following participants: (#8) and (#9) who we know to be related; (#11), (#12), and (#24). I would also include in this group (#27) and (#15) even though they do not possess the mutation at DYS385b. Further testing might put (#5) in this group, as well, if DYS447 proved to be a 24.
Group B is defined by these traits:
- a 13 at DYS388
- a 13 and 28 at DYS389i and DYS389ii
- a 23 at DYS390
- a 16 at DYS464c.
In addition, a sub-group of Group B has a 13 at DYS439 and a different sub-group has an 18 at DYS458. I would include in Group B, the following: Sub-group B1: (#31), (#18), (#7), (#14), and (#29); Sub-group B2: (#1), (#4), and (#23). I believe (#16) belongs in Group B, but is not in either sub-group.
Of the dozen participants that don't fit into either Group A or B, about 8 show some similarities which may indicate a third, nebulous Group C. However, the only trait that all in this group have in common is some kind of mutation at DYS449. Otherwise, they all appear to be very closely related to the Atlantic Modal Haplotype, which is most prevalent in Haplogroup R1b. The similarities might simply be random, given the close nature of all those in Haplogroup R1b. Participants who might be included in this group include (#2), (#3), (#19), (#20), (#21), (#22), (#25), and (#26). Further testing is needed to determine whether this really is an identifiable group or just a collection of similar samples.
Two other participants, (#30) and (#6) matched each other pretty closely, but they don't fit too well into either of the defined groups, although there are some similarities to Group B. More testing is needed on (#30) to see if it truly matches with (#6) at more points.
In recent weeks, exciting new data has shown that there is a group of McCartys whose DNA results are significantly different from the early participants. These three participants have results that belong, not to Haplogroup R1b, but to Haplogroup E3b, which evolved in the Middle East and northern Africa. Two participants (#32) and (#34) can trace their ancestry to the same region of South Carolina. These participants were not sure of a ancestral connection until their results showed a perfect 12/12 match! More genealogical research will likely show the relationship between the lines. The third participant (#13) from this group, dubbed Group E, shows results that are different from the others, but is likely related through a much more distant common ancestor.