Reading mtDNA Results

Test results are read from top left to bottom right, comparing sequences to the CRS. Examples of mutation notation include:

- **1C**: A cytosine insertion at position 1.

- **16069T**: A thymine substitution at position 16069.

- **16093–**: A deletion at position 16093.

These mutations, passed down over thousands of years, help trace maternal lineages and their geographic origins.

The population studies and migrations help to give us entire mapped regions by which one can contrast the mtDNA results in the distribution maps.

Studies by Wilson et al. (2001) and McEvoy et al. (2004) revealed key insights into European mtDNA and Y-DNA distributions:

- **Wilson et al.** found that mtDNA allele frequencies were nearly identical between Basque and Turk populations, suggesting shared maternal ancestry. They also observed that female migration during the Neolithic and Iron Ages contributed to genetic homogenization in Celtic-speaking regions of Britain.

- **McEvoy et al.** analyzed 300 Irish individuals and identified 155 mtDNA haplotypes, primarily within Western Eurasian haplogroups (U, HV, JT, I, W, X). 

No significant differences were found between eastern and western Ireland mtDNA frequencies. However, Y-DNA distributions varied, likely due to colonization and forced migration.

- Approximately 13% of Irish mtDNA was attributed to Neolithic cluster groups, while Neolithic male lineages were largely absent—possibly due to reproductive failure or extinction.

📌 Key Observations in the variety of differing maternal lineages in the Kiely Surname Project were as follows:

- Geographic shifts influenced mtDNA haplogroup distributions.

- Mesolithic populations migrated to warmer regions to escape glaciation.

- Y-DNA migration into Ireland is relatively recent (within the last 3,000 years).

- Neolithic gene flow into Ireland occurred between 15,000 and 6,000 years ago.